


Lunar: A Different World

by B_the_Blue



Category: Lunar (Video Games)
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe, F/M, Fantasy, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-18
Updated: 2016-03-18
Packaged: 2018-05-27 09:41:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 24,450
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6279367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/B_the_Blue/pseuds/B_the_Blue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What if Ghaleon had won the final battle and achieved godhood? Would he have led Lunar into a new Golden Age? Or does the future hold only doom? Join Dragonmaster Michael, the god Ghaleon's new champion, as he struggles to save Lunar from the coming darkness and must make a choice between duty and love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue: Dawn of a New Age

**Prologue**

**Dawn of a New Age**

The Dragonmaster stumbled from the fatigue of battle but quickly regained his composure and steadied himself. The fight had proven to be difficult for both sides. Ghaleon had lost much of his power since the battle begun. He no longer stood tall and proud like he had done so earlier. Now he was hunched over and took long slow breaths, his face full of frustration.

Unfortunately, the Dragonmaster's side didn't look much better. In fact they, if anything, looked to be in even worse shape. Kyle stood in a daze gripping his double-handed sword in one hand. His left arm had been fractured and hung limply at his side. Nash could barely stand, let alone cast anymore spells. Jessica now lay unconscious bleeding from a deep gash in her forehead, and without her healing spells the rest of them had no way to recover from Ghaleon's vicious attacks.

The only two remaining who could fight effectively were Dragonmaster Alex and Mia. Sizing up the situation Alex realized that it was growing grimmer by the minute. If Ghaleon didn't fall soon it would all be over. No! Alex wouldn't let that happen. He couldn't let that happen. If he ever wanted to see Luna again he would have to win.

"Stop this foolishness, Dragonboy," Ghaleon said in his snide confidant voice, "your team is looking a little shaky. Why don't you just give up? This is NOT a fight you can win, no matter how hard you try."

Kyle forced a grin and looked over at Alex. "Don't worry Alex; I'm still in tip-top shape. Let's kick this guy's ass and go home."

Alex knew that Kyle was lying through his teeth, but he could tell that Ghaleon was bluffing as well. Taking another deep breath, Alex charged once more, swinging the Sword of Althena in a sideways arch at Ghaleon's head. Stepping quickly backwards the Magic Emperor managed to avoid contact with the sacred blade.

Magic energy glowed in the palms of Ghaleon's hands. First it was dim blue, but it rapidly changed into a radiant green that exploded outward at his attacker. Alex blocked the magical blast with his shield, but the impact sent him hurdling to the floor anyway.

As Ghaleon readied another energy attack he was caught in the back by a fireball. It exploded off of his magical barrier mere inches away from his body. Though the magical armor deflected the brunt of damage it knocked him off balance allowing Alex to return to his feet unharmed.

Still off balance from Mia's fireball, Ghaleon wasn't able to dodge the next frontal assault launched by Alex. Taking the full blow to the chest he lurched backwards. If it wasn't for his magical shield the strike would have been fatal. Ghaleon could tell that the majority of damage was coming from the Dragonmaster, but he also felt that in a one on one fight he would be able to win. The attacks from the others where distracting him more than directly harming him, but distraction was allowing him to be harmed.

Alex rushed at Ghaleon once more, but this time Ghaleon sidestepped around him and charged an enormous fireball in his hand. Alex spun around just in time to bring up his shield as Ghaleon threw the massive flaming orb; however, the orb missed Alex by several feet. Knowing that Ghaleon wouldn't miss, at least not by that much, Alex turned his head just in time to watch Mia explode into flames. With a shriek of pain she collapsed motionless to the glistening marble floor.

"YOU BASTARD!" wailed Nash as he stood staring in disbelief as he watched the woman he loved burn to death before his very eyes. "You son of a bi…" he trailed off as shock transformed into rage and then into pure electrical energy. With the last ounce of his strength Nash sent a bolt of lightning directly into Ghaleon's mid torso.

Focusing his energies into the magical barrier Ghaleon weathered the electrical attack without taking much damage to himself. Alex watched helplessly as Nash collapsed from exhaustion. Then he knew what Ghaleon was doing. He was eliminating the others so they could fight one on one. That was a fight that Alex knew he had little chance of winning. Ghaleon raised an arm and begun charging up for another energy strike.

"Kyle look out!" Alex screamed, but it was too late. As the words left his mouth a green bolt of energy struck Kyle squarely between his shoulder blades. With a sound of cracking ribs Alex's last ally was sent to the ground. The Dragonmaster stood alone against the most powerful magician on the planet.

"Well now Dragonboy. This looks a bit more even doesn't it," said Ghaleon as he took a step toward Alex. "This is how it should be, don't you agree? The battle that will decide the fate of Lunar is now between you and I. The Magic Emperor against the _mighty_ Dragonmaster." His voice seethed with sarcasm.

"You…how could you?" stammered Alex at a loss for words. The shock of what was happening just starting to sink in.

"Well what did you expect? You came here to kill me did you not? Was I supposed to spare your lives? I think not. Now I suggest we finish this. You are failing to amuse me." With those last words Ghaleon created a semi-transparent energy blade that extended from his right arm. It glowed with a dangerous purple hew as slivers of red lighting streaked up and down it.

Alex took in a deep breath. This was it. Do or die. Ghaleon had taken the others from him, but there might still be a chance to save Luna. And if he killed Ghaleon quickly enough he might even save some of his other friends.

Without hesitation Alex flung himself at Ghaleon. Their two blades clashed, sparking violently each time they met. Even though Alex was better at swordplay than Ghaleon, he was at a disadvantage. In his left hand he wielded a shield to protect himself from Ghaleon's blows. While Ghaleon's magical barrier blocked any blows that Alex got through.

This meant that Ghaleon's left hand was free. Free to charge up magical energy. Although Alex could block blows from the front, when a thousand shimmering needles of ice struck him at all angles he could not defend himself. Falling to his knees the Dragonmaster watched in disbelief as Ghaleon ran him through with the energy blade.

Slumping to the ground in a pool of his own blood, Alex felt the tears swell up in his eyes. "Luna…I'm so…sorry."

"Do not worry about your precious Luna. I assure you that she is in good hands." Ghaleon laughed out this last remark and then made his way to the ivory staircase that lead to the Goddess. She had almost finished absorbing all of the remaining energy in Lunar. Soon the process would be complete.

As he walked up the stair case he heard a low squeaking noise, turning he saw a small winged cat-like creature sobbing on top of the fallen Dragonmaster. "Oh yes, the White Dragon. I almost forgot about his presence," he said almost as an afterthought. Then he continued climbing the staircase until he reached the top where the Goddess Althena was waiting for him.

"My dear Goddess, we have finally gotten rid of those annoyances. Now with that pesky Dragonmaster out of the way there is no hope of you breaking free of my spell." For a small while Ghaleon had worried that the bond between the two would actually break the magic.

"I thank you my lord," Althena said in her trance like state. "Soon all of Lunar's power shall have returned to me."

"Very good. All we do now is wait," Ghaleon said as delight began to run unchecked in his voice. "Now the error made by Dyne fifteen years ago will finally go corrected."

* * *

Laike stood solemnly at the base of a cliff near his hometown of Burg. Twenty feet away from him lay the monument to his former self, Dragonmaster Dyne. But that didn't matter now. Nothing mattered anymore. Laike watched as the last bit of Lunar's life energy vanished into Althena's Fortress as it floated high above the ground. Everything went bleak and gray.

Lunar wasn't a green, living place anymore. It was dead. As soon as food supplies ran out everyone would starve. Within a few months the population of Lunar would die from hunger, but the people of Lunar didn't even have a few months to starve. Soon it would all end.

In order to transform the girl Luna back into the Goddess Althena it required all the magic of Lunar. Ghaleon believed that it was so important for humanity to have a "leader" that he would kill the planet in order to have a deity again. Next Ghaleon would transfer all of that power into himself. In fact, he probably was doing just that at the very moment.

As soon as he had become God he would need to recreate the world of Lunar, but in order for Althena's power to _create_ first it had to _destroy_. All life would be wiped from Lunar. Then Ghaleon would create life again. Laike had faith that his former best friend would be a capable ruler, but he had no right to take the lives of the current populace.

Perhaps he had been wrong to aid Althena in her request. He should have known that Ghaleon would have tried something like this. He thought Alex had the power to stop him, but even in his prime, Laike doubted that he himself could have stopped Ghaleon. Not after Ghaleon had achieved such power. It would have taken two Dragonmasters to stop him.

* * *

Ghaleon held Althena in his embrace. She appeared small, even weak compared to his large frame. As he held her, the power of Lunar, all of it, flowed into her and then passed into him. Ghaleon stood there holding the limp Goddess in his arms. "Goodbye my sweet Althena. I only wish you hadn't made such a foolish choice. I cannot allow one who would willingly forsake her people, to rule any longer. I promise that I shall recreate Lunar and lead it into a golden era."

He let Althena's body slump to the ground. Every last ounce of power was drained from her. The Goddess was dead. In her stead there was a God. A powerful God who wouldn't let his personal feelings interfere with his leadership. Ghaleon had transformed from one of the Four Heroes, into the Magic Emperor, and now into the God of Lunar.

Ghaleon looked across the dead barren wasteland that was Lunar. He raised his hands into the air and let out a burst of magical energy that engulfed the entire planet. The pulse systematically wiped out all life. Then another pulse emitted from the fledgling God, again engulfing Lunar, and green life once again began to spring forth. Ghaleon was ready to recreate his planet with his people. He started the walk down the ivory stairs back into the body of Althena's…no, Ghaleon's Fortress.

"Goodbye Dyne. Rest well in the afterlife my friend."


	2. Chapter 1: Lunar's New Dragonmaster

**Chapter** **1**

**Lunar's New Dragonmaster**

Ghaleon sat on a large throne at the top of the long ivory staircase. He had been Lunar's God for nearly a millennium and had become quite proficient at the job. To his surprise the job of managing millions upon millions of humans was much more difficult than he had imagined it to be. Occasionally, he wondered if that was why Althena had stopped being the Goddess, but he'd always dismiss the notion as foolishness. Althena would never have given up. She had believed in one thing and he in another, it was as simple as that.

He reasoned the world was lucky he had won a millennium ago, for he sensed that Lunar would be in dire need of a God in the coming days. He felt something evil creeping up on them. He couldn't tell from where. He just knew that it was approaching Lunar and didn't have good intentions.

Ghaleon's thoughts were suddenly interrupted as someone climbed over the last of the steps and knelt down before him. It was a large man; he stood well over six feet with eyes so dark they appeared black. He wore unique tan colored armor over a black body suit. On his head was a red and white semi-pointed helmet with matching red and white trimmed flaps of magically enforced cloth that hung from both sides and the back.

A smile crossed Ghaleon's lips, "Rise Dragonmaster."

"Thank you, my Lord," the Dragonmaster replied as he rose. It had not been long after the recreation of the world when Ghaleon recognized the need of a Dragonmaster. Wars had broken out across the land, and Ghaleon's Armies were slowly losing ground. But then the dragons had been reborn. The Blue, the Black, and the Red. Under the authority of Ghaleon, Dragonmasters had once again returned to the defense of Lunar.

The first was Dragonmaster Todd. With the new Dragonmaster leading Ghaleon's forces peace had returned, but that had been seven centuries ago. Ages had passed since Todd held the position of Dragonmaster. This new Dragonmaster was named Michael.

The Dragonmasters of Old Lunar would have recognized Michael as one of their own, save for a single detail that set apart those from the Old and those from the New Lunars. The Dragonmasters' sword. All of Althena's Dragonmasters had used the Sword of Althena, but that ancient blade now resided in the hands of the White Dragon Nall. The weapon Michael wielded was the Sword of Ghaleon. A magical blade forged by the God himself, first wielded by Todd, and then by all those since who had achieved the mantle of Dragonmaster.

"My Lord, the sudden monster outbreak in the Marius Zone has been put down," the Dragonmaster reported.

"Very good," Ghaleon replied with a smile, "but tell me, what do you think caused the upsurge of monsters?"

Michael frowned as he pondered the question. "I don't really know, my Lord. Over the past four years the monster population has steadily risen, but this outbreak was unprecedented. We haven't found any evidence leading up to the cause. It is all very puzzling."

"Yes, it is. Not even I can see the source of this…anomaly. But I do know that something is not right, Dragonmaster. I am just giving you a fair warning. I foresee a dark time approaching us. I hope you are prepared to do all things necessary to defend Lunar."

"To the death, my Lord."

"Let us hope it does not come to that, but yes, to the death Dragonmaster."

* * *

Michael walked down the corridor away from Ghaleon's chamber. This latest meeting with the God had disturbed him. If something could make Ghaleon nervous it was doubly worthy of making a Dragonmaster nervous as well. He stopped when he made it into the large garden that resided in the center of the fortress. Green vines climbed up the trees draping the entire garden in a majestic hew. Brightly colored flowers were bursting out of the ground and small pixies danced among the tree limbs.

Michael sat at the base of a stone fountain located in the center of the garden. This was Ghaleon's favorite place. He often walked the garden speaking to the pixies. Occasionally Michael would walk with him. It was kind of crazy he admitted to himself. Never had he imagined that he would spend his days chatting with God in his own personal garden.

Much had happened to him that he never would have imagined. He had joined the Meribian Army when he turned eighteen and became incredibly successful. Meribia was one of the cities that Ghaleon had recreated from the old Lunar. It was the home of Ghaleon's military force, and the home of Michael.

He had racked up an impressive record and quickly gained rank, soon being promoted to captain. This was when Ghaleon took notice of him. Before he knew it he was on a quest to become the next Dragonmaster. This was when his life had gotten interesting. First he spent a year in the floating city of Vane, the other city that Ghaleon had restored.

It was here that he met Kevin, the prodigy magician of Vane, who had already achieved the rank of Vice-Premier at the age of nineteen. Ghaleon ordered the young magician to teach him the art of magic. Over the course of the year they had become best friends. The next year of his life had proved to be one of the hardest. He and Kevin traveled Lunar in search of the four dragons. By the year's end he had become Dragonmaster: the highest rank in Ghaleon's Army.

Michael looked over at the garden entrance and watched what appeared to be a young woman walk in. She wore an elegant ruby incrusted dress. Save for a streak of brown that flowed down the middle of her long mane, her hair was primarily the same flame red color of her dress. Michael smiled as she approached him. Standing, he took her into his embrace and kissed her.

This was yet another thing that Michael never imagined would happen. He knew that he would likely fall in love someday, but it was the person that he had fallen in love with that was the surprise.

"Good evening, Ruby," he greeted as he stared into her unnaturally red eyes. He held in his arms the Red Dragon in her human form. To his knowledge nothing like this had ever happened. A human falling in love with a dragon? It was an absurd idea, even if the human happened to be the Dragonmaster. Absurd or not, it had come to pass.

She was the first of the four dragons whose trial he had taken, and if not for her he never would have passed Nall's trial. That damned White Dragon made life difficult for everyone. He was the only survivor from the Pre-Ghaleon age, before the death of Althena. As far as Michael could tell Nall blamed Ghaleon for the incident. He would even go so far as to say that Nall hated Ghaleon for it.

Being the defender of a God was not an easy job, and Michael had no use for people who stood against Ghaleon. Be them human, monster, or even dragon. It made no difference. This was why he and Nall didn't get along very well, and that was an understatement. It was all they could do to even tolerate each other's presence.

What an odd Dragonmaster I am? He would sometimes think to himself. He was the only Dragonmaster in history who hated one of the four dragons and was in love with another.

"What's the matter?" Ruby asked. "You look upset."

"It's Ghaleon. He seems nervous about something. He tries not to show it, but I can see that the current events are starting to worry him," Michael answered.

Ruby frowned for a second then her smile reappeared as fast as it had vanished. "You know what you need?"

"I need to find out what's causing the increase in the monster popul-"

"No," Ruby cut him off, "that's why you seem so worn down. Not even a Dragonmaster can solve all of the world's problems. You just need to relax for a day or two," she said pulling him closer.

"Ruby…I can't take any vacations. Ghaleon needs me right now, and it's my duty as the Dragonmaster to serve him," he replied.

Ruby stepped away placing her hands on her hips and scowled angrily at him. "Don't be ridiculous Michael! I'm sure Ghaleon is perfectly capable of running Lunar for a few days without you holding his hand the whole time."

"Ruby, don't be like that," Michael said. "I really don't think that I should just ignore the problems at hand."

"The only problem at hand is you working yourself to death, Michael," Ruby growled as she became increasingly irritated. "You're only human, Michael, you're not going to live forever…"

Michael opened his mouth readying his next argument, but then closed it. They were both aware that he would die literally millennia sooner than she would. For him their love would last an entire lifetime, but for her it would be only a fleeting moment. Then she would be alone. The thought bothered them both, but it especially frightened Ruby.

"Okay," he whispered as he gave in. "Ghaleon's Army will just have to do without its Dragonmaster for a few days.


	3. Chapter 2: Old Friends

**Chapter** **2**

**Old Friends**

The buildings of Vane stood tall and proud in their floating city. The buildings always made Kevin feel better. Whenever he felt overwhelmed by his ever continuing studies, or anything else for that matter, he would just take a walk through the streets of Vane staring up to the buildings. It reminded him of the glory of his creator Ghaleon.

Kevin made his way up the streets until he reached the Magic Guild Headquarters once again. Inside the main building he was revered by all the students. While it was slightly juvenile he'd often enter class rooms just to listen to the praise that he'd receive. If there was one thing he enjoyed more than being reminded of Ghaleon's glory it was being reminded of his own glory.

In his office he felt fairly important. He sat behind a giant oak desk that was littered with paperwork and rare magical knick-knacks. Only two people in the entire Guild had offices finer than his own. One was Regal Orian; she was the Premier of the Guild. The other was the Guild Leader, Maxillius Arca.

In his opinion he had the best job in the Guild. He earned nearly as much fame by being the Vice-Premier as the Premier and Guild Leader did, but without as much paperwork. Sure, he had paperwork, but not as much as the other two. His job allowed for a lot more 'hands on' experience. Whenever something came up he was the one sent on the mission. Lately he had been on all kinds of missions, mostly monster hunting, but there had been a few others.

When the knock came to his door he did not find it the least bit surprising. Instead he calmly got up and answered it. Just as he had expected it was a messenger from Maxillius. Brushing back his long blond hair Kevin followed the messenger up the stairs to the Guild Leader's office.

Inside stood three people. Maxillius was a tall slender man with wavy brown hair that reached the bottom of his neck. He was wearing the dark blue robes of Guild Leader. Tiny magical runes were etched in silver all over the robe's long sleeves. Regal was a shorter blonde woman in her late twenties. Her hair was cut much shorter than Maxillius's, and in Kevin's not so humble opinion she was dazzlingly beautiful. Both he and Regal were dressed in a similar fashion as the Guild Leader. Except their robes were crimson red and embroidered with golden runes.

The third man was not as familiar to Kevin. He had seen him somewhere before, but he couldn't quite place it. He was a shorter stockier man with a balding head that was peppered with white and black hair.

"Kevin, I'd like you to meet the High Priest of Ghaleon, Narian Alphastride," Maxillius said.

That's right. Kevin had met him in the Temple of Ghaleon while traveling with Michael. By the name of Ghaleon! That had been nearly five years ago. The time sure did fly by.

"Long time no see," Kevin greeted.

"Kevin, your superiors speak very highly of you," complemented Narian.

"Thank you," replied Kevin as he made a short bow. He smiled to himself and thought, _they should speak highly of me. I'm the best damn magician in all of Lunar._

"We have a mission for you," said Regal in a very official sounding tone.

Something wasn't right Kevin noted. This wasn't an ordinary mission. Whatever was going on had the direct attention of Ghaleon himself. A tingle of excitement ran down Kevin's spine. Something really big was happening. If he pulled off whatever job they had for him his fame would boost enormously.

"You are familiar with the Blue Spire, are you not?" questioned Narian.

Kevin shrugged. "Of course, it's the tower rumored to be linked with the Blue Star."

Narian frowned. "Yes, we believe that it is indeed linked to the Blue Star, and we believe that earlier today someone or something came from the Blue Star."

Kevin was shocked. "No way. Contact with the Blue Star? This is going to be historical!"

"Yes," agreed Narian, "and we believe that you are the only one qualified to investigate the phenomena. Regal and Maxillius have been ordered to return with me to the Fortress of Ghaleon."

Kevin nodded slowly soaking in all of the information. "I accept the mission. I'll be on my way." With that Kevin spun on his heels and started to exit.

"Kevin," Maxillius called after him. "The Dragonmaster is waiting for you in the Vane Library."

Kevin smiled to himself as he left the room. This just kept getting better and better. Not only did he get to increase his already impressive fame, but he would get to travel with his old best friend again as well.

* * *

Ruby and Michael poured over random books in the Library as they awaited Kevin's arrival. They smiled at each other secretly as the awed crowds watched them. To them they saw the Dragonmaster, which was the next best thing to seeing Ghaleon himself, and they saw one of his dragons. She was in human form, but these magicians could surely sense her immense magical power. They knew she was a dragon, but they did not know that the two were lovers. They assumed that they had the same relationship that all Dragonmasters had with the dragons. They assumed wrong.

The only person who knew their little secret would be arriving shortly. Michael began to chat with some of the students that approached him. They asked him all sorts of questions. About his adventures, about the dragons (of which he told them to ask Ruby), and about Ghaleon.

Michael was more relaxed now than he had been for a while. He and Ruby had spent the last three days together. To a Dragonmaster a three day vacation was an immeasurably long one. His work almost never ceased, but Ruby would occasionally force him into a day or two alone with her. Though he hated to ignore his duties as a Dragonmaster he quickly forgot about them during these brief vacations; Ruby made sure of that.

As it turned out they had timed it perfectly. He spent three days alone with Ruby and nothing that required a Dragonmaster happened on those three days. Today was a different story though. His first day back on the job and something big happened.

A strange anomaly had occurred inside the Blue Spire. Most of those who knew about this (and there were few) believed that someone (or something) had come from the Blue Star. Ghaleon had personally ordered him to check it out. Michael was allowed to bring any assistance that he needed and was told to bring one of the dragons along as well. Michael had chosen Ruby as the dragon, and then requested the assistance of the Vice-Premier of Vane, Kevin Oslek.

As Michael and Ruby answered questions to all of the awestruck students, Kevin walked through the door. Instantly the two friends saw each other. Kevin walked up his arms extended and put both hands on the Dragonmaster's shoulders.

Kevin's face was grim and he looked like he had something very grave that he needed to tell his friend. After a moment of staring into his friend's confused eyes the young mage finally spoke, "You know what? You get uglier by the day."

They stood there for a second and then both broke into laughter. Michael and Ruby bid farewell to the students as they left Vane's library and headed into the city.

"It's good to see you again, Kevin," the Dragonmaster said. "It's been a long time…too long."

Kevin nodded then said, "It's been so damn long since our journey. I can't believe it. Five whole years…hot damn."

"And not much has changed. I see you're still the same old potty mouth you've always been," teased Ruby.

"And I see that your still the same old hot dragon-chick that you've always been," Kevin teased back, casually throwing an arm around Ruby's shoulder.

"Please," Ruby said as she elegantly tossed his arm off. "You're just not my type."

"Oh yeah, I must of forgot. You're a 'Dragonmasters only' kind of girl," Kevin retorted feigning hurt feelings.

Ruby quickly threw her index finger in front of her lips and shushed him. "Quiet! If any one finds out about us it'll be on the front cover of the Vane Enquirer," she exclaimed.

Kevin waved her off. "After what were gonna discover today no one'll even care about your little love affair. Trust me."

"You sound pretty confident, Kevin. What do you think we'll find?" Michael asked.

A wild grin crossed Kevin's face. "I don't know, but whatever we find, it'll make us famous."

Michael and Ruby laughed. Kevin hadn't changed a bit in the last five years.

* * *

Within the hour the three of them had made their way to the Blue Spire. Ruby had transformed into her dragon body shortly after leaving Vane and flew to their destination, Michael and Kevin riding on her back. No one spoke as they made the journey. Even though the old friends were ecstatic to see each other they both were nervous at what they'd find.

Kevin was more excited than scared, but Michael, who knew more about the state of Lunar than Kevin, was half worried that they'd find the Blue Spire transforming into some kind of gigantic beast. Fortunately, that particularly ridiculous fear was put to rest when the tower came into sight.

The tower known as the Blue Spire stood silent and motionless, as it had since the creation of Lunar.


	4. Chapter 3: The Girl from the Blue Star

**Chapter** **3**

**The Girl from the Blue Star**

The Red Dragon landed about fifty yards away from the tower's base and let her passengers climb off her back onto solid ground. Kevin let out a low whistle as he gazed up at the tower trying to find the right words to describe it. He soon gave up and settled with, "Impressive ain't it?"

Michael nodded as he too looked up at the Blue Spire. "They say this is the oldest thing in all of Lunar. It's even older than Ghaleon himself."

"Yup," Kevin agreed. "I suppose that the Goddess Althena built it before she died and chose Ghaleon as her successor."

Again Michael nodded.

"Are you boys planning on staring at it all day? I know it's pretty and all, but c'mon so am I, and you two can stare at me anytime you feel like."

The two friends spun around at the sound of her voice, realizing for the first time that Ruby had returned to her human form. "Not true. My good man the Dragonmaster might have that luxury, but I haven't seen you in ages," Kevin explained in a mock business like voice. "But I suppose that it is for the best after all. If you were around me all day I'd never get any work done. I'd be content to look at you until my eyes bled."

"I'm flattered, really" Ruby responded in the same mock tone of voice. "And charmed might I add, but I'm afraid I find that eye bleeding thing a little unnerving."

Kevin shrugged, his face adopting a fake frown. "Yeah, my bleeding eyes seem to have that effect on all the girls. I guess maybe I should get a doctor to look at them before I grow old and lonely." With that he slumped off toward the Blue Spire.

The others followed him. Ruby laughing and Michael grinning broadly. He was used to Kevin hitting on Ruby, so it didn't bother him in the slightest when he did (and he did frequently when she was around). He had been putting the moves on her since the first time they met the lady dragon. Kevin had thought it was fantastic that one of Ghaleon's four dragons was so beautiful, and he thought that it would be drop dead hilarious to hit on her. It was.

Ruby's surprised face when Kevin made his first move had been priceless. It was so funny that even Michael had reacted with open laughter. This was how Ruby had gotten to like them so much. After that point she journeyed with them to find the other three dragons. Along the way she had fallen in love with the prospective Dragonmaster, and he with her.

The Blue Spire seemed to rise into the heavens with no intention of ending. It was by far the tallest structure in all of Lunar. And as its name sake suggested, it was blue, a brilliant sapphire that's beauty outdid even the sky and ocean.

The three companions approached the spire and stood silently before the front gate. "Any ideas on how to open it?" questioned Kevin, briefly glancing away to face his friend.

"Ideas?" retorted the Dragonmaster with a smirk. "Who needs ideas when they work directly with a God?" With that Michael pulled a red gemstone out of his pocket and walked up to the gate.

Unlike the rest of the tower the front gate was not blue. Instead it had been forged from pure silver and had been enforced with the strongest of magic to keep out any who might try to invade the holy place. The gate itself was enormous, rising several meters off of the ground and having a girth that would let half a dozen large men pass through shoulder by shoulder simultaneously, and spaced in the lower center of the gate a silver dragon's head had been crafted.

The head protruded out at Michael's eye level. In its left eye socket a vibrant red stone glowed softly; its sister stone glowed with the same gentle light as the Dragonmaster held it in his hand.

"The keystone of the Blue Spire", Michael explained as he placed the stone into the dragon face's remaining eye socket. "Ghaleon himself keeps this normally."

Once the second stone was set in place both began growing brighter until they seemed to be made of molten fire. A thin red line instantly appeared and cut the gate down the middle. With a low rumbling sound the gate slid apart.

"Now," Kevin said his voice quivering slightly from his built up excitement. "Now let's find out who our honored 'guest' is."

"Hold up, friend," Michael cautioned, halting him briefly. "We don't know if our guest is friend or foe. So be on guard."

Kevin let out a low sigh and shook his head slightly as he returned his friends serious gaze. "Haven't you known me long enough to recognize my fighting ability? Don't worry about me, for my lips always have a spell on them." With a wink the confident mage did an about face and marched through the gates into the Blue Spire. He was the first living being from Lunar to enter since the world's recreation.

The insides of the tower resembled the outside. The floor, the ceiling and even the walls were all made from the same blue material that the outside had been made of. The rooms were all empty except for the stair case that led from floor to floor.

Though Kevin had entered first, it was Michael who led the party through the tower. Sword drawn, he walked cautiously through the seemingly endless floors, followed closely by Ruby and Kevin. After what seemed an eternity of climbing from one monotonous floor to the next they reached the spire's final floor.

At least they assumed that they had, for this floor had no staircase leading upward and unlike the other floors it had a rather unique feature. In the center of the room there was a plain red circle about six feet in diameter, but what caught the groups' eyes was not the funny red circle but the person lying inside of it.

Though the figure was lying face down it was almost certainly female. Lunar's 'guest' had long blue hair that seemed bluer than the great spire itself and their frame was smaller than most males, more comparable in size to Ruby's human form than Michael or even Kevin. She wore a militaristic navy-blue uniform with a flowing red cape.

A normal person might have asked if she was dead or not, but the three companions who stood in front of the mystery girl were far from being normal, so they needed not to ask. Kevin voiced the group's opinion first with a simple comment, "She's not dead."

This was a statement not a question. All three of them were experienced in the ways of magic and could feel its presence with ease. The amount of magical energy emitting from the girl was staggering. It was easily stronger than the magic that Kevin possessed and it even felt stronger than the magic that, Ruby, the Red Dragon herself wielded. In fact the three of them would bet that she had stronger magic than any of the four dragons. The only time any of them had felt magical power that outdid the 'guest' was when they were in the presence of Ghaleon.

Kevin was the first to voice their thoughts once again. "I hope she's friend rather than foe."

Michael just nodded as he mentally prepared himself for the battle that might take place. With all four of the dragons by his side (three really, for he didn't suspect that he would ever have Nall join him in battle) he would have felt very confident in their chances of success, but with only one of the four he knew that if it came down to a fight they would be hard pressed to emerge victorious.

Without warning she stirred. Regaining her strength almost instantly she stood and faced the three. She was indeed a woman, and a beautiful one at that. Her cape had padded shoulders that added to the overall military appearance of her uniform. And it was too. To call her attire a uniform was more truthful than to call it simply clothes. Around her neck she wore a circular pendent crafted of a shiny black substance that was bordered by polished gold.

Her eyes looked over the three as they stood dumbfounded by her sudden awakening. They could tell that she was sizing them up and trying to figure out as much about their group as they were about her. When she finally spoke, it was with a calm and even voice that sounded both melodic and confident at the same time. Her first unexpected words were: "Good, a Dragonmaster."

Michael was more than a little shocked to realize that she could recognize the garb of a Dragonmaster and had known him to be one. He opened his mouth to speak, but the 'guest' spoke again before he could think of what to say.

"Take me to Althena," she commanded at once in her melodic voice.

"Say what?" Kevin stammered confused at her outrageous and impossible request.

"I must see Althena," she said again at once, "the matter is of the utmost importance."

"I'm sorry," Michael began as he tried to figure out who or what this strange girl was. "I cannot take you to Althena, for she has been dead for the last thousand years."

The strange girl's face contorted with sudden surprise and confusion. "Please do not jest, Dragonmaster. I can feel her power even from here. What you state is impossible."

"It is not impossible nor do I jest, my lady," Michael assured. "What you feel is the power of Lunar's new God, Ghaleon. One thousand years ago Althena died and handed her power to her successor. That is whom I serve."

"That is absurd. Explain at once." She demanded, her voice still calm but now edged with confusion.

Michael wondered just how old this girl would have to be if she believed that Althena was still the Goddess of Lunar, but seeing no choice in the matter he launched into the story that Ghaleon had told to all of his people. "One thousand years ago a great evil invaded our peaceful world. It was a man of immense magical power known only as the Magic Emperor. He commanded the forces of the entire Vile Tribe, a group of people who had shunned Althena and turned against her in the ages past.

"Ghaleon fought alongside of a Dragonmaster named Dyne to protect Althena, but in the end the Magic Emperor's power was just too great. All of Lunar's people were wiped out in the cataclysmic battle, and even the great Dragonmaster Dyne was slain before they brought down the Magic Emperor. In the end the Goddess Althena was too greatly injured to recover.

"Using the last of her powers she healed Ghaleon's own grievous wounds and then passed the holy powers down onto him. Tasking him to rebuild Lunar and recreate its people. This is the Lunar that we now live in, my lady, and Ghaleon is the God that I serve."

As Michael finished his tale the girl's face grew pale at the grim tidings. "Now I must ask you to explain who you are and what your business is," the Dragonmaster added.

The girl quickly regained her composure and answered, "My name is Lucia, and I am the Guardian of the Blue Star. If Althena is no more I must see this Ghaleon. I believe that Lunar may be in grave danger. Danger that is equal to this Magic Emperor of which you speak."

It was now Michael's turn to pale. He had believed his entire life that the Magic Emperor was the greatest evil that Lunar could have ever faced. Althena after all was the equal to the present day Ghaleon, and even in his human form he was said to have been the most powerful mage that Lunar had ever known. Not to mention the legendary Dragonmaster Dyne of whom songs were still sung about. If a fiend like the Magic Emperor could destroy the world…what kind of monster could be his equivalent?

"Explain," Michael said even as he felt cold sweat run down his face. He didn't know why, but he believed Lucia, and what she had just said chilled him to the bone.

"Zophar," Lucia returned instantly. "Zophar is the demon-God responsible for the destruction of the Blue Star. He could not be destroyed so Althena had no choice but to seal him away, but in doing so she was forced to seal the Blue Star away as well.

"When Althena migrated to Lunar with her remaining people I stayed behind to guard the Blue Star. I was put into a magical slumber and was only to awaken when Zophar's evil had dissolved and the Blue Star was once again able to host life; however, something has gone terribly wrong.

"I have awoken early and can no longer sense Zophar's presence on the Blue Star. He is now residing on Lunar. I am certain of it, but I do not know how long he has been here."

Michael's throat felt dry. It all made perfect sense. For the past four years the monster population had been steadily growing and the beasts themselves were becoming more aggressive. This was what Ghaleon had been sensing all along. This was the cause of all Lunar's problems.

"Four years," Michael uttered more to himself than to Lucia. "Zophar has been here for at least four years, maybe more."

For the first time in his life the famous vice-premier of Vane, Kevin Oslek, was truly at a loss for words. Never before had he felt such an impending doom. He had battled all sorts of monsters, both by himself and alongside his best friend, the Dragonmaster, but never had the stakes been stacked this high. Fighting to save a town or a city from the evil grasps of monsters was one thing, but knowing that if you lost the whole world would come to an end was something else all together.

"Kevin," Michael spoke, his voice breaking Kevin out of his trance, "can you teleport us out of the Spire?"

The young mage shook his head. "No, the Blue Spire is saturated with magic. A spell as strong as the teleportation of four people would be too difficult to cast in this place, even for me."

Michael frowned at his friend's ill news. "Then we run. If we knew that Lucia had come from the Blue Star then so does Zophar. I fear that he's going to make his move soon."

Without further explanation the Dragonmaster took off through the door, only to find himself running out the front gate and into the bright midday sun. Confused, he quickly stopped himself and spun around in time to see both of his friends sprint out of the front gate.

The three of them stopped and stared back at the tower sincerely confused. Lucia strode confidently out of the front gate holding her pendent in her hand. "You may not have the power to cast such a spell, sir mage, but I assure you that it is not beyond my ability."

Kevin's jaw dropped as he came to understand the full reaches of her power. In all of Lunar not a mage existed that could rival his spell casting powers. Not even the Guild Leader or the Premier had more power than him. They exceeded him in rank only due to their experience but not through raw magical power. Then Kevin's face came up suddenly in a delighted smile. Not in all of Lunar existed such a mage, but she was not of Lunar!

"Can you teleport us to Ghaleon's Fortress?" asked Michael hopefully.

"No, the fortress of a God would be guarded with stronger magic than even the Blue Spire," she replied evenly.

"In that case let's get a move on," said Ruby as she began her transformation from human form to dragon form. In less than a minute the Dragonmaster and his two companions were flying on the back of the Red Dragon towards Ghaleon's Fortress. Bringing with them dread news.


	5. Chapter 4: World on the Verge of War

**Chapter 4**

**World on the Verge of War**

Kevin was seated on the side of a fountain within the great garden. The fountain was made from smooth stone, perhaps marble, and was polished to a perpetual shine. In the center stood a statue of a long dead Dragonmaster, water poured out from the sword that it held to the sky.

The fountain was probably beautiful. Hell, the entire garden was probably the most beautiful place in all of Lunar, but Kevin was not in the mood to appreciate beauty. Ever since he had arrived with Michael, Ruby, and Lucia things had gone straight to shit.

The mage wondered briefly if it was some sort of blasphemy to think of phrases that contained words like 'shit' while in the holy garden of the God. He finally decided that Ghaleon himself would probably agree with him on this one: the state of Lunar was shit.

Ghaleon had confirmed that a being known as Zophar had indeed been responsible for the catastrophe on the Blue Star, and the consensuses after their meeting with Ghaleon was that he was indeed on Lunar. He was after all not on the Blue Star anymore (according to Lucia anyway), and it explained why the monster population had increased so sharply in recent years.

It also meant that they had only seen the tip of the iceberg. The monster outbreaks around the world were nothing compared to what Zophar would unleash. Soon nowhere on Lunar would be safe. Kevin let out a deep sigh and slumped his shoulders. Zophar had no doubt learned that Lucia had come to Lunar by now. He knew that they were aware of his presence. He would make the first move. Strike before they could prepare.

That's what everyone was trying to do right now. Prepare for Zophar's first strike. Regal and Maxillius were present for the council with Ghaleon, but they had both left to prepare the guild. Likewise Michael and Ruby had left to Meribia so they could prepare the army.

It seemed to him that he was the only person left on the fortress. This wasn't true of course. Ghaleon's Fortress was bustling with soldiers and clerics alike. The other dragons had been summoned as well. Nyreo the Blue Dragon was somewhere in the garden keeping to himself, while the Black Dragon Lash was more than likely gallivanting around with the troops or putting on some kind of comedy show. That one didn't take anything seriously.

Nall was so far a no show. Which wasn't too surprising, and to be perfectly honest Kevin didn't really care if that stuck up bastard of a dragon decided to drag his smelly ass in. Kevin had about as much use for Nall as Michael did, and that wasn't a whole lot.

Kevin wished that he could be doing something, anything really. All of his friends and peers were out preparing for the war while he waited patiently (or in this case impatiently) behind. He had felt so exited earlier in the day, but now he felt like trash. Part of him wanted Zophar to hurry up and attack, another part of him dreaded the moment when it all would start. But for now all he could do was sit around and stew in his anxiety.

* * *

Michael and Ruby landed back on Ghaleon's Fortress only six hours after leaving. They had alerted every major city in Lunar. Starting with Meribia and Eyuuka in the west, and then moving eastward. These cities had sent their own messengers out to the smaller communities so that they too could raise whatever militia that they had.

"We've done all we can," Ruby said after returning to her human form.

"I know, I just hope that it's not too little too late," Michael replied.

Almost as soon as the thought left his mouth a soldier sprinted up to them. "It's started, sir! I've received reports of attacks from all over Lunar!"

"Calm down," Michael told the soldier who looked like he was about to faint. "What's the situation?"

The soldier was very pale. He shook his head and then said, "Bad. Armies of monster have invaded almost every major city in the world. It all happened so fast…all the reports…they all came at once. The whole planet's been plunged into war, sir."

Michael took a deep breath to steady himself. "Go back and make sure everyone is ready. The fortress could be attacked at any moment."

The soldier snapped a quick salute and then ran off. Michael shook his head. He suddenly felt dizzy, things were happening too fast. He was about to summon the dragons to him when he saw them running toward him, behind them was Kevin.

"We've heard the news," Kevin said. "What do we do now?"

"Yeah, Boss Man. What's the plan," Lash Black asked.

"As for the monster attacks we have to hope that the people of Lunar can fend for themselves. We've got to find Zophar and eliminate him. By now Ghaleon should have been able to pinpoint his location."

The three dragons and Kevin all nodded. It was a simple plan really. Brutally simple when it came right down to it.

_"Finding me won't be necessary."_

The voice that said these words was not a human voice. It was distorted and somehow horrible to hear.

Michael spun around to face the speaker; there was no one there. But at the far end of the fortress's open deck there was a great dark spot. It was like the air in that place had decided to stop reflecting light. Energy flowed from that spot. Dark energy that was so immense that it terrified him. "Zophar," he said. It was not a question. There was no doubt that the presence that inhabited that dark spot was the demon-God Zophar.

 _"Like I said: Finding me won't be necessary,"_ the voice repeated.

Zophar had arrived.


	6. Chapter 5: Ultimate Choice, Ultimate Sacrifice

**Chapter** **5**

**Ultimate Choice, Ultimate Sacrifice**

Michael's hand automatically went for his sword. He drew it and stood defiantly before the looming darkness. "It looks like you've saved us the trouble of finding you."

The voice from the darkness burst into horrible inhuman laughter. _"Saved you trouble, Dragonmaster?"_ More of the laughing. _"You do not know trouble, Dragonmaster, but perhaps I could enlighten you…in trouble."_

Before either party could speak again Ghaleon emerged from the inner walls of the fortress. To his right stood Lucia, and to his left stood the High Priest Narian Alphastride. The God resonated with angry power. "You dare challenge me here? This place that my power is the strongest? Zophar, your foolish arrogance this day shall cost you dearly."

The darkness burst into laughter once again. _"Do you say so?"_

Ghaleon stood resolute. "I do."

Michael could feel it gathering in the air. Magical energy from both sides was crackling all around them like a lightning storm. It was invisible lightning, but equally deadly. Nervousness like nothing he had ever felt crept into his being. Then he caught Ruby out of the corner of his eye, she gave him a smile, and his nervousness vanished. In its stead was utter confidence. It didn't matter how much power Zophar had. Michael was the Dragonmaster of Ghaleon. With him were his three loyal dragons, his best friend, and the God that he served.

_"And is this pathetic being, this human, this Dragonmaster, going to make me pay for my 'foolish arrogance'?"_

"Yes," Ghaleon answered simply.

 _"Really?"_ The darkness chuckled. _"And what power does he have that you believe will challenge me?"_

"My power," Ghaleon said. "The power of the dragons and that of my own flow inside of him."

 _"Then I suggest we settle this right now,"_ the darkness said.

Michael moved himself into a battle stance. Those around him followed suit.

The darkness let out its terrible laughter again. _"Not so hasty my friends. First I must choose a form that I believe would be suitable to fight one as powerful as you. Oh! I know just the form."_ Laughter. _"This one came from Lunar's 'glorious' past."_

The darkness suddenly condensed down and took the shape of a man. At first the man was as black as an eternal nightmare, then color replaced the blackness.

Michael gasped at what stood before him. Dear Ghaleon its taken on my form! Was his first thought, but then he realized that wasn't actually the case. It had taken on a human appearance, and that of a Dragonmaster, though it wasn't a copy of Michael himself.

"How do you like my new form, Ghaleon?" The Dragonmaster-thing demanded. The voice had changed along with its shape. It now sounded as human as it looked.

A great sorrow passed across Ghaleon's face; quickly it was replaced with a much stronger emotion. Anger. As long as Michael had been a Dragonmaster he had never seen Ghaleon angry, and for that he was glad. They could feel the anger flow off of Ghaleon in great waves. Narian Alphastride who stood next to the God took several reflexive steps backward.

"You will pay for mocking Dyne," Ghaleon promised.

Zophar-Dyne laughed. It was still unpleasant sounding, but Michael thought that anything sounded better than its natural voice and laughter. "You seem to recognize this body. I thought you might. The shadow of the past shows many interesting things. And I wonder Ghaleon…can you kill him again?"

The comment struck Michael as odd. Dyne wasn't killed by Ghaleon. He was killed by the Magic Emperor.

"Dragonmaster, destroy this _thing_ ," Ghaleon ordered.

"Yes!" Zophar-Dyne challenged. "Destroy me, Dragonmaster!" Zophar thrust his sword into the air. The mock blade resembled the sword of Althena, except that its hilt and pommel were pitch black and not golden. The air around the entire fortress began to shiver; within seconds the fortress was surrounded by black winged monsters.

The creatures looked vaguely reptilian. They had long slender claws and razor like teeth, their wings spread out the full length of two men, black scales covered their entire body except for the leathery wings. The only part of them that was not black was their eyes which contained a red glow, like the embers of an uncontrollable fire.

The Dragonmaster charged Zophar, and all around battle broke out. Some of the black winged creatures continued to circle around the fortress in the air, but many of them landed. They were met with the swords of Ghaleon's elite guard and the spells of his elite wizards.

Lucia was among the first to spring into action. She launched a bolt of blue energy through one of the black creatures tearing it in half. Two more of the black creatures were instantly incinerated by a wall of flame she conjured up. Sensing a threat some of the nightmarish beasts tried to strike her from behind, but they too found death at the end of her blue energy lances.

Kevin watched this display with a mixture of respect and jealousy. Not one to be shown up he jumped into the fray. A trio of well placed fireballs killed two of the creatures and wounded a third. Though the burns on its side were far from fatal, Kevin finished it off with a lightning bolt.

After finishing off another set of monsters with his potent lightning magic Kevin's gaze returned to Lucia. She continued to cut through the enemy ranks one at a time. Relentlessly killing them with an almost effortless speed.

Grunting with frustrated determination Kevin redoubled his efforts and summoned a hail storm of razor sharp ice shards. Over half a dozen bloody corpses fell from the skies. Several other wounded creatures were quickly dispatched by the Elite Guards.

Another glance at Lucia told Kevin that she was still slaying far more than him. One, two, three. They continued to fall to her at an uncanny rate.

Kevin shook his head with frustration and pulled up his sleeves. It was time to pull out all the stops. Thrusting his arms into the air he screamed the words of the most powerful spells that he knew. The skies exploded with jagged streaks of lightning, pillars of fire burst out of nothingness, razor sharp chunks of ice blew wildly through the air.

Kevin looked on in exhilaration as his enemies dropped from the skies by the dozens. He cast a triumphant gaze in Lucia's direction, but to his undying annoyance she seemed not to even notice his brilliant spell. Without pause she continued her relentless and deadly assault.

And all around them more creatures came. Every monster they killed was replaced with another. And another. And another.

* * *

The three dragons transformed from their human guises to their true form. The three massive beasts formed a triangle around their Dragonmaster and his nemesis. As Michael charged Zophar-Dyne he felt the power of the dragons surge into his veins. Michael thrust his sword forward and Zophar parried. The Sword of Ghaleon clashed against the mock Sword of Althena; in the chaos and cacophony the ringing of steel cried out.

Fueled with the power of the dragons Michael lashed out with his blade. His speed was faster than human capability, his movements a blur, but still Zophar parried the strikes and contributed attacks of his own.

The two foes circled each other like wild beasts, each one waiting for an opening. Every time Michael thought he had one Zophar would prove him wrong. Michael ducked an overhead slash and countered with a thrust. Zophar side stepped the attack and spun around to Michael's back side, almost scoring a blow before he spun around, blocking it with his shield.

Dyne's twisted features broke into a wicked grin. "You seem pretty good. Evenly matched wouldn't you say?"

"I would hardly call us even. I can already tell that victory will be mine," Michael said, his tone was matter-of-fact.

"Oh?" chuckled Zophar. "Please, enlighten me."

"Gladly."

The three dragons pulsated with energy. "From the Blue Dragon I find speed," Michael shouted. "From the Black Dragon I find power. From the Red Dragon I find courage."

"What pretty poems you humans can make up, but what does that spew even amount to?" Zophar taunted.

Michael's mind had gone elsewhere and he didn't hear Zophar's words. He could feel it within him. The full power of his dragons. The sky above was exploding with lightning, fire, and ice from Kevin's spells, but Michael hardly noticed. The Dragonmaster attacked again. This time the rate of his blows had tripled, each one with several times more force than before. Zophar stumbled backwards overwhelmed by the sudden onslaught.

It only took a moment before Zophar's defenses failed him. With a brutal thrust Michael plunged his sword through Zophar's gut. A look of surprise appeared on the mockery of Dyne's face. Then a wave of magical energy pulsated up through the Sword of Ghaleon and into Zophar.

The mockery of Dyne stumbled backwards and burst into flame. Michael lowered his sword and took a deep breath, wanting to claim victory, but hardly believing it to be that easy.

Indeed Zophar was not finished. The demon inhaled the fire that had engulfed his body. Once the last bits of flame vanished down his throat his eyes began to glow as if the fire had gone inside of them. Then they cooled back down to their former brown coloring.

Zophar eyed Michael curiously. "Did you truly believe destroying me would be that simple?"

"I stabbed you once; I can do it again. You'll eventually perish." The Dragonmaster said.

Zophar raised his sword and readied himself for another strike. He didn't respond to Michael's statement, but the Dragonmaster felt a sudden chill. Zophar seemed different somehow. He still looked the same, but he somehow felt different.

"I must confess," Zophar said. "I've been holding back. To me, you and your dragon power are nothing."

The two joined battle again. Michael had hoped he was bluffing, but he could feel the difference instantly. He no longer dominated the fight. In fact Zophar seemed to have the upper hand. To Michael's dismay Zophar continued to build up momentum.

Then Zophar broke through with a slash to Michael's side. He stumbled backwards for just a second, just long enough for Zophar to smash him in the face with his shield. In the next instant Michael was on the ground with his right hand - his sword hand - pinned by Zophar's boot. A crazed smile of insanity and triumph was painted across Zophar's face; his sword was raised in the air ready to come down at any instant.

"From the Blue Dragon I find speed…" Michael started the mantra again, hoping to find some last ounce of power, but there was none. "…Red Dragon I find courage." As he finished the line Zophar swung his sword down for the killing blow.

The sword was stopped halfway. The sound of steel on steel rang out again as Zophar's mock sword smashed against the true Sword of Althena. Having appeared out of nowhere a man stood over the fallen Dragonmaster. The newcomer's short white hair blew softly in the breeze and his crystal blue eyes shone with fierce determination.

"And from the White Dragon you find truth," the man said.

Michael looked up in astonishment. Nall had saved him. Nall the White Dragon who had shown him nothing but contempt in the past had saved him from death. The irony was not lost on him.

Using surprise as an advantage Nall threw Zophar back with a swing of his sword. Michael pulled himself up and looked at Nall. He looked at the White Dragon and said, "Nall, I…"

"Never mind Dragonmaster. We can talk later; first let's take care of him."

"Now that all four of the dragons are here…you're finished." Michael said, glaring at Zophar.

"Yes, I am finished," Zophar agreed. "And you are finished. Playing this game that is, but don't worry. I have another good game to play.

A black aura appeared around Zophar's body as he spoke. Without warning the aura burst outward in all directions. On reflex Michael raised his shield up to his face, but the wave of blackness rushed past like it was nothing more than a burst of air.

"What was that supposed to accomplish?" Michael asked.

Zophar smiled. The smile of the devil when he has your soul, but you don't yet know it. "Why don't you ask your dragon friends?"

Michael turned to Nall in confusion and asked, "What's he talking about?"

Nall gave no response. His eyes were locked straight ahead, his body stood rigid and unmoving. Then Michael noticed that Nall was now covered with a faint black aura that clung to him like a haze.

In a sudden panic Michael looked at the other three dragons. All three of them stood completely still, the black aura restraining their movement. Then Michael realized what the really strange thing was. All three dragons had been forced back into their human forms.

"What have you done?" Michael demanded.

"I have neutralized your dragons. They won't interfere with our next game." Zophar rose into the air and hovered above the battlefield with outstretched arms. In the palm of each hand ball of energy began to form. "It's a game I call _choice_."

"Choice?" Michael asked. "What kind of choice?"

"A simple one. You see, in each of my hands I hold a sphere of highly condensed energy. One of these I'm going to throw at Ghaleon, your liege. The other I'm going to throw at the Red Dragon…your love."

Michael's mind seemed to seize up on him. Zophar knew? How did he know? Throw the energy balls at her and Ghaleon? Michael looked over at Ruby, still frozen in the black aura, then at Ghaleon. The God's eyes were closed and he stood as still as the dragons, but his stillness did not come from a spell or curse. Ghaleon had gone within himself and was focusing all of his powers outward. He was ensuring that all of his followers were fighting this war at a hundred percent power. From the mighty Dragonmaster and the dragons, down to the lowest ranking clerics and mages.

Michael had heard about this state before, but until then he had not actually seen it. Ghaleon's battle state was usually safe, because no being had enough power to cause any real harm to him; however, Zophar was not your average foe. If anyone could cause harm to Ghaleon it would be him. Then it struck Michael like a sharp blow to the head. They were both helpless. If Zophar threw his energy spheres at them they would have no way to dodge or deflect the attack.

Zophar continued. "By now you've no doubt realized that the two of my targets are an equal distance away from you, more or less. Judging from your speed if you start running at the same time I throw you'll be able to save one of them. The other one will of course be killed, and don't think that my attack won't be fatal. Not even a God can survive the power I have stored in these."

Cold sweat covered Michael's body. Zophar had him trapped in a corner. He couldn't forsake Ghaleon. His primary duty as a Dragonmaster was to protect him. If it had been one of the other dragons Michael could have chosen Ghaleon without hesitation. It was a heavy sacrifice, but it was one that would have to be made. This situation was different. Ruby was more to him than just a comrade or a friend.

Michael's mind raced for answers but came up blank. It just kept repeating the original question: How did Zophar know? And after a moment of stunned silence he voiced his question. "How do you know about me and Ruby?"

Zophar laughed with absolute glee. "Foolish Dragonmaster! You of all people should know the value of knowing your enemies. I have had years to observe mine. I watched you become a Dragonmaster, and I watched you fall in love with a dragon. It was then that I knew how I would crush you. Love has always been the greatest weakness of your pathetic race."

Too stunned to speak Michael just shook his head. He felt dizzy and sick. He felt like he was stuck in the middle of a nightmare. Only he knew that this was real. Feelings of hopelessness this great didn't manifest themselves in dreams.

"I've given you ample time to make a decision. Love or Honor, Dragonmaster. Choose!"

The red energy spheres rose above Zophar's hands, hovered for just an instant, and launched themselves in opposite directions.

In the horror of that instant Michael's mind almost froze. For second he thought that he had frozen and could do nothing except watch as Zophar killed both Ruby and Ghaleon. Then he realized that he wasn't frozen at all, and that he had already started running as soon as the energy spheres moved.

The red sphere exploded against the Dragonmaster's shield numbing his arm instantly. The force of the blast caused him to slide backwards over two feet, but his stance was grounded so firmly that he didn't stumble.

* * *

The black auras around the dragons vanished the moment the two spheres exploded; Nall and the other three dragons sprung back to life. The feeling of helplessness had been overwhelming. He had been able to see and hear perfectly. The only thing that he couldn't do was move.

It was true that Nall had never seen eye to eye with Michael, but watching him get forced into such a trap was almost unbearable. Now that it was all over Nall felt great relief flooding into him, and his face broke into wide smile as he looked at the Dragonmaster standing protectively in front of the one he had chosen to save.

When they first met Nall had coined Michael as being a militaristic knucklehead who would never amount to anything but one of Ghaleon's little lap dogs. He never figured that Michael would have time for anything as trivial as love. It turned out that his first impression had been wrong. Michael had chosen to save Ruby, the one that he loved.


	7. Chapter 6: Flight from the Fortress

**Chapter** **6**

**Flight from the Fortress**

It was no longer a matter of foolish pride or a way to gain fame and glory. Kevin now had a singular goal. Survive.

His lungs burned as he darted randomly in all different directions. The amount of magic he was using was causing a severe strain on his body, and now that he was too worn out to cast spell after consecutive spell he found himself running more than fighting. Even as exhausted as he was he continued to cast spells when he could. One did not kill the Vice-Premier of Vane easily.

Another beast landed in front of Kevin, blocking his path. Conjuring up every last ounce of magic he possessed Kevin hit the beast in the face with a fireball. The attack was too minor to kill it but strong enough to blind it. Kevin took a deep breath and tried to regain focus. After that last spell he had gotten dizzy. Shaking it off the mage headed to his next goal. Lucia. Though she was obviously losing momentum her spells continued to come one after another.

 _If I can get next to her I'll be able to rest up_ , he thought. His plan was to use Lucia as a safe haven of sorts. By using her as a shield he could rest up between spells, and Lucia seemed to be the perfect shield. Any monster getting too close to her was bound to find an early grave. Not that they would be given actual graves. In fact after dying these creatures seemed to evaporate slowly. The ones killed at the battle's start had entirely disappeared. Kevin supposed it was a good thing though. If the bodies had remained solid the battlefield would have been too crowded to move around in.

He reached her without too much trouble and paused to gather energy for another spell. This one was a lightning bolt. It knocked an enemy down, but it got back up almost immediately. He sighed and tried to regain focus. It did not come. His vision remained blurry and his thinking muddled. His eyes turned to Ghaleon and Kevin prayed. He needed more power. He had been pushed to his absolute limit. Now he needed to go beyond. Then it happened.

A bright crimson ball of energy hit Ghaleon and exploded with tremendous force. A soldier who had been standing near him was instantly vaporized by the shock wave. Ghaleon's eyes burst open with a look of shock. Red bolts of electricity crackled through his body as the evil energy sunk in. Then his eyes closed, and the God collapsed.

Kevin blinked. He hadn't seen that. Couldn't possibly have seen that.

Only he had seen it. It had really happened. Ghaleon lay unmoving. The God of Lunar had been brought down. _It isn't possible_ , Kevin thought.

He looked across the battle field and spotted Michael. The Dragonmaster was standing in front of Ruby. Only Zophar could hurt Ghaleon, Kevin thought, but if Michael hasn't been beaten how did Zophar get to Ghaleon?

Lucia stopped her perpetual spell casting and ran to the fallen God. She placed her hand on his forehead and closed her eyes. Turning to Kevin, who had followed with what speed he could muster, she said, "He's alive, barely."

It was all too surreal for Kevin to fully grasp. "How did this happen?" he asked. Lucia didn't answer. She didn't know how.

* * *

Zophar's face glowed with amusement and triumph. "You humans never disappoint! Sacrificing your God, your liege, your only hope to win this war, for the sake of love. How delightful! The only thing more pathetic about your weak human bodies is your weak human emotions. Look Dragonmaster! Your God lies dying! Watch! It is your doing after all. It is your legacy!" Zophar once again burst into laughter, only this time his voice reverted from the mockery of Dyne's long lost voice back to the inhuman warble of his true voice. Then the features of Dyne began to fade and Zophar was once again a cloud of endless black.

Michael could not respond to the taunting that Zophar cast down on him. His mind was overflowing with emotions. Anger came first and blazed its way into his mind clouding his vision. Then another emotion overrode his initial anger. Guilt. He had failed. Ghaleon was dying because he was unworthy of protecting him. He had taken the selfish route and chosen his own personal love over his duty. Worse, he had chosen it over the well being of Lunar. Everybody would suffer because of his selfishness.

Michael hung his head in shame. He had no right to be the Dragonmaster. Not only had he been selfish, but he would do it again if he had to. If he was offered the same choice over again he would make the same decision. He was unworthy of being the defender and champion of God.

* * *

Zophar felt overwhelmed with joy and success. It had all been so easy, but now he had to rest. He had used most of his energy in the battle. Soon he would recharge, and when his power returned he would finish off any who survived this day. The Dragonmaster, the dragons, Lucia of the Blue Star, any and all who posed a threat would be destroyed. At long last the power of Althena would be his.

Zophar's laughter faded away as did his body. Within moments Zophar had vanished, but his army of flying minions did not. The battle continued.

* * *

Nall was the first to act. He saw that the Dragonmaster's heart had been defeated, and Nall knew that an apathetic leader was the last thing they needed. "Dragonmaster! We have not been completely defeated yet, but we must retreat, this is not a battle we can win! Grab Ghaleon and evacuate immediately!"

Michael turned to Nall and stared blankly. For a second Nall thought he might not act at all, but then his eyes lit back up, fueled by some inner resolve and he gave a sharp nod. The Dragonmaster sprinted to Ghaleon and tossed him over his shoulder. "Everyone evacuate immediately!" he ordered. "All of the Elite Guard seal yourselves in the fortress. Everyone else go to the dragons."

Knowing his plan the four dragons returned to their dragon state. Still holding Ghaleon's limp form in his arms Michael jumped onto Ruby. Kevin made his way through the chaos and climbed onto Lash, while Lucia and Narian boarded Nyreo the Blue Dragon.

The dragons kept the flying beasts at bay with their powerful breath. Ruby cooking monster after monster with her fire as the nightmarish hoard continued to bombard the survivors, but time was growing short. Ruby's fire, Lash's thunder, and Nyreo's ice couldn't hold the army of monsters off for much longer.

The four dragons took to the skies. With their powerful wings they easily outpaced the black winged creatures. Nall took point so he could lead them to a place that he claimed was still safe. The fortress soon vanished from sight. In the distance the sun began to set. Ghaleon's reign as ruler of Lunar had come to a close.


	8. Chapter 7: The Star Dragon Tower

**Chapter** **7**

**The Star Dragon Tower**

When the dragons finally landed the sun had long since set. Nall had led them to a large expanse of forest located northeast of Meribia. They flew deep into the forest's center before they landed. Michael had asked Nall if he was sure that the forest would be safe. It seemed like a perfect place for Zophar's army to take refuge after a long day of laying siege to Meribia, but the White Dragon had assured them that nothing would venture this deeply into the woods.

Kevin sat around a pile of dry wood trying to start a campfire. He had never felt more magically exhausted. He was too drained to even start a simple campfire. Ruby sat down next to him and ignited the wood with a small blast of fire breath. Kevin looked up with a sly smile and said, "That so turns me on when you breath fire as a human."

"I know," Ruby said, "but now that the whole world knows about me and Michael you'd better stop hitting on me. People might take you seriously and start to think I'm easy."

The two shared a laugh then Kevin said, "Well, you are aren't you?" Ruby hit him in the head with a pinecone.

On the other side of camp Lucia stood in front of Michael trembling in rage. "What were you thinking?" she demanded. "Saving the life of a dragon rather than protecting Ghaleon? Are you mad?"

Michael stood in rigid silence, like a private being reprimanded by his sergeant, as she continued to rave. "The purpose of the dragons is to protect their God. Protecting Ghaleon should have been priority. What you did was absolutely illogical!"

Then Michael realized something about Lucia. She had no concept of love. She actually didn't understand why he had saved Ruby. She just knew that he had placed the life of a dragon over that of Ghaleon. To her Michael's actions hadn't appeared selfish at all, just mindbogglingly moronic. How simple life would be if love wasn't an issue, Michael thought. He didn't know whether to pity her or envy her.

"If it were my decision," she continued. "I would have you stripped of the title Dragonmaster!"

"Fortunately it is not your decision," Nall said suddenly. "And personally I applaud his decision."

Lucia turned to Nall with an expression of confused horror painted on her face. "You _applaud_ it? Since when have the dragons become priority on Lunar?"

"You honestly don't understand," Nall half asked half stated. "He did not save her because she was a dragon. Her being a dragon had nothing to do with his decision."

"What are you saying? That he was plotting against Ghaleon?" Lucia was furious now.

"Of course not. Michael is very loyal to Ghaleon," Nall said.

Michael had been at odds with Nall since the day they first met. He wasn't used to having Nall stand up for him. He wasn't quite sure if he liked it or not.

Lucia didn't know how to respond. How could he have been loyal? He sacrificed Ghaleon for a lesser being. Confused and angry Lucia stormed off to the outskirts of the camp. She was honor bound to help them save Lunar, but she suddenly wondered if Lunar had any hope of surviving if its protectors were this hopelessly incompetent.

Michael walked to the opposite side of camp and hung his head. He agreed with her on one thing. He didn't deserve to be a Dragonmaster. Nall walked up to him. They stood in silence for a while then Michael asked, "Why do you agree with my decision? I acted selfishly and have endangered Lunar. She is right. I do not deserve to be a Dragonmaster."

Nall remained silent for a moment and then said, "A great man once told me that a person willing to sacrifice the ones he loved in the name of duty was not a hero, but a fool."

Michael snorted and asked, "And who, pray tell, told you this?"

Nall shrugged. "The advice is good no matter its source, but I think you would find it interesting to know that it was the late Dragonmaster Dyne who said this to me."

Michael looked up, intrigued. "The legendary Dragonmaster Dyne actually said that to you?"

Nall shrugged again. "Technically he was talking to Alex, but I was their all the same."

"Alex? Who's that," Michael asked.

A look of deep sadness crossed Nall's face. "He was the last Dragonmaster of the old world. Lost to history forever."

Michael frowned and examined Nall. "I've never heard of a Dragonmaster named Alex."

Nall shook his head. "Of course not. He and Ghaleon weren't exactly on friendly terms. Not that it matters now. I suggest you get some sleep. There is work to be done tomorrow."

Michael did not need Nall's advice about sleeping. He was as exhausted as everyone else. Soon the camp was silent except for the soft crackling of the low burning camp fire. As Michael drifted to sleep he took comfort in what Nall had said. A man willing to sacrifice the ones he loves for the sake of duty is not a hero, but a fool. Michael took Ruby's hand and gave it a slight squeeze, she squeezed back. Michael was very, very happy that he had chosen to save her.

* * *

Dawn came early and when Michael woke his muscles were stiff and sore. Kevin and the old priest cooked a small breakfast over the campfire. Michael checked on Ghaleon to make sure he was still breathing. He was. If barely. Lucia stayed away from the rest of the group, probably feeling that they were a bunch of ignorant lunatics.

"Any suggestions on what we do?" Michael asked. The question was open to everyone, but he looked to Nall when he posed it. The White Dragon was turning out to be more helpful than Michael ever would have thought.

"I know exactly where we have to go," Nall said.

"And where is that?" Michael asked.

"From here we go to the Star Dragon Tower," Nall replied. "It is our only hope at this point."

Michael raised his eyebrows. "I've never heard of this 'Star Dragon' Tower. Have you, Kevin? Narian?"

Kevin shook his head and shrugged. Narian said, "Never."

Lash spoke up saying, "Nall, I've never even heard of the Star Dragon Tower, or of any Star Dragon for that matter, and I _am_ a dragon."

"Ditto for me," said Ruby.

The Blue Dragon said nothing but shook his head.

"Not surprising, the Star Dragon is pretty secretive, and he's not like us other dragons," Nall said, motioning toward his peers. "He's different…" Nall paused to think. "We were all made to serve the deity of Lunar. The Star Dragon serves no one. His ebb of power was not based on Althena's, nor is it now based on Ghaleon's. If anyone can help us it would be him."

"I've flown over this forest many times," Michael said, "and I've never seen a tower sticking out of it."

"The Star Dragon only reveals himself when you are searching specifically for him," Nall replied.

"Okay, so where can we find him," Kevin asked.

"I've had the honor to meet with the Star Dragon before. I know the way to his tower," Nall said. "Time is short. If we leave quickly, we should make it to the tower by noon."

The group finished their breakfast and headed out. Nall lead the way with Ruby walking along side of him, winding deeper and deeper into the dense woods. Lash and Nyreo carried Ghaleon on a makeshift stretcher as Michael and Kevin flanked either side of them keeping guard. Narian prayed over Ghaleon throughout the trip which Michael thought was a pointless gesture. He highly doubted that Ghaleon could be revived by receiving his own blessing. Lucia followed from the rear keeping a cautious eye on the group.

"Why are you being so helpful," Ruby asked Nall.

"What do you mean?" Nall asked back.

"You know very well what I mean. You've never helped us before on any kind of mission. Why change your colors now?"

Nall sighed. "Ruby, I hate Ghaleon, you know it and I know it, but I love Lunar, and if I have to save Ghaleon in order to save Lunar. So be it."

* * *

The hike lasted a little over four hours. Sometimes they had good trails to follow, but other times they had to slowly make their way through thick and relentless foliage. Carrying Ghaleon through these areas proved difficult, but they managed. All at once the forest opened into a wide clearing.

They stood in awe. The clearing was perfectly circular, about a hundred meters in diameter. It was as if the trees had suddenly hit an invisible wall that they could not break through. Inside the clearing only grass and small yellow flowers grew, but what caught their attention was what the clearing contained. In the exact center of the clearing a great tower rose into the air.

"My God…," Michael whispered. "It might even be taller than the Blue Spire."

"So this is the Star Dragon Tower," Lucia said, "Althena had mentioned it to me before, but I had never actually seen it."

"Come," Nall said as he headed for the tower. "It's a long climb to the top, and we need to hurry."


	9. Chapter 8: The Hall of Heroes

**Chapter** **8**

**The Hall of Heroes**

The climb up the Star Dragon Tower was longer than Michael had imagined. He had hoped Lucia might be able to teleport them to the top or at least part way up, but she said the magic surrounding the tower was far too strong, making teleportation an impossibility. Even Ghaleon himself would have to walk if he desired an audience with the Star Dragon.

As it was Ghaleon didn't walk, he was carried. Michael was thankful that dragons possessed inhuman strength. If two humans were carrying Ghaleon they would have tired long before reaching the top. Still, everyone took a rest when they reached the halfway point. The Hall of Heroes.

The room itself was much larger than the other rooms. It was magically enhanced to be over five times larger than the other floors. At least Michael was quite sure it was magic that gave the room its size; otherwise a large bulge would have been visible from the outside of the tower. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of life size statues filled the room. Each statue was carved from solid silver, polished so highly that they seemed to glow. Some depicted large brawny knights, others showed men and woman dressed in the robes of wizards or priests. A few statues were of average looking people, neither warrior nor wizard. The statues were lined up in dozens of rows, with each row containing easily over a hundred statues.

"This is the Hall of Heroes," Nall said. "These statures are monuments to the greatest men and women in Lunar's history. Some even date back to the Blue Star. All crafted by the Star Dragon himself."

"It's amazing," Ruby said. Her voice was almost a whisper. It seemed almost a crime to speak too loudly within the Hall. Even for people accustomed to living around a God this place felt holy.

"Yes, the Hall is truly awe inspiring. I'm glad the Star Dragon decided to show it off today."

"What do you mean?" Narian asked.

"This floor doesn't appear every time you enter. It just depends if the Star Dragon feels like displaying his work or not."

They nodded in understanding and began to look around. Time was still an issue so they didn't stop all together, but they moved slower than their normal pace, enjoying the sites of the room. Even Lucia seemed to be fascinated by the multitude of heroic shrines.

"Hey, look Michael. It's Ghaleon," Kevin said coming to a stop.

"You're right," Michael said. The statue was indeed of Lunar's deity. He stood tall and majestically dressed in the robes of the Magic Guild Premier. To his left was a large beast man with a giant axe slung over his shoulder, and to Ghaleon's right was a woman wearing the robes of Magic Guild Leader. Mel de Alkirk and Lemia Ausa.

"Yes, Ghaleon made his way into the Hall. He was one of the Four Heroes of the Heresy War after all, but personally I like the other two better, though Hell Mel was pretty scary when he felt like it," Nall told them.

Michael sent an irritated look at Nall for the jab at Ghaleon, but let it slide in the spirit of newly formed comradery. Instead of arguing the point he said, "Dyne's not here. He was one of the Four Heroes too."

"That's because Dyne's statue is in the Dragonmaster Shrine up ahead," Nall said.

They came to the Dragonmaster Shrine a moment later. It stood in the exact center of the room and was impossible to miss. Four superbly crafted statues of the dragons set the backdrop, and the Dragonmaster statues were lined up in front of the dragons. At first all eyes were on the dragon statues. Unlike the other statues that were silver, the dragons each were carved from a stone of their color. The Red Dragon was made from ruby, the Blue Dragon from sapphire, the Black Dragon onyx, and the White Dragon from diamond.

After they pried their gazes away from the dragon statues Michael was instantly overwhelmed by the sheer number of Dragonmaster statues. "Nall, there's gotta be a mistake," Michael said confused. "I know there were never this many Dragonmasters in the history of Lunar."

It wasn't Nall who answered, but Lucia. "Many of these Dragonmasters were never on Lunar. They were on the Blue Star."

"That's right," Nall confirmed. "Most of these were foreign to me the first time I saw them. I doubt even Ghaleon is aware of them."

Michael nodded in understanding as the group began admiring the statues. These statues were silver like the others, but their eyes were made using shining gem stones, some were vibrant emeralds, others pale blue sapphires, and many were naturally brown diamonds of various shades. At the very end was the statue of himself, but he hardly noticed it. His eyes were fixed on the statue standing _between_ Dyne and Todd.

"Wow," Ruby murmured. "This statue looks exactly like you. It even has your eyes. They look like they were made out of onyx or something instead of those brown diamonds."

"Ruby, look at this," Michael said, barely hearing her.

She came over and stared at the statue with an apparent loss for words. "Who is this?"

The statue was of a man Michael had never heard of. Actually it was more of a boy than a man. Judging by the statue the unknown Dragonmaster looked to be in his middle teens. In unison Michael and Ruby dropped their gaze to the statue's base and read aloud, "Dragonmaster Alex of Burg."

Michael blanched. Nall had been telling the truth! The last Dragonmaster of Old Lunar had been Alex, and that meant Ghaleon had been lying to them. But why?

"Nall," Michael said. "I need an explanation."

Nall shook his head, "Not from me. If I told you the truth you'd just reject it."

"That's not true, Nall," Michael said.

"It doesn't matter anyway. Right now we just need to concentrate on the present. The past can wait to be dealt with," Nall said.

Michael stared at Alex's statue for a while longer. Trying to get some feel as of why Ghaleon must have hated him so. From his looks the young man seemed kind and brave. The textbook example of a Dragonmaster, but Nall was right, the past could wait.

Reluctantly the group left the splendors of the Hall of Heroes and resumed their march to the tower's top. They half expected other marvelous rooms to jump out at them, but the rest of their trek was uninterrupted. After an eternity of climbing Nall came to a stop as he reached another stair case. "We're here. Up this last set of stairs is the Star Dragon's chamber."


	10. Chapter 9: Ghaleon's Confession

**Chapter** **9**

**Ghaleon's Confession**

All was perfectly silent and calm as the group ascended the final staircase. At the top was a large set of double doors, crafted from pure silver, but otherwise plain. Michael shook off his anxiety. For the last five years of his life he had worked hand in hand with a God. Dealing with a dragon was nothing to get worked up about.

Taking the lead position Michael pushed the doors open and stepped into the Star Dragon's chamber. The room looked nothing like what he had expected. He expected the room to be as ornate as the Hall of Heroes with rows of priceless art surrounding the tower's owner. What he saw was a plain room, circular, without any art, the ceiling was made from some transparent material that gave a full view of the sky. The room even appeared smaller than the other floors, though at the end was another, smaller doorway, and in the far left corner was a large green statue of a dragon.

The statue was different than any other statue he had ever seen. He realized at once why. This was a living statue. It was the Star Dragon himself.

The whole group filtered into the chamber. Lash and Nyreo laid Ghaleon by the left wall and joined Ruby and Nall at Michael's side. Next to them stood Lucia, Kevin, and Narian. Michael stepped out in front of the group and said, "I am Michael, Dragonmaster of Ghaleon, servant and protector of Lunar. The time is dark and we are in dire need of help, thus is why we sought you out."

For a moment the only reply was silence. Then the Star Dragon spoke. His voice did not come from the statue like Michael had expected, but it came from everywhere at once. It sounded as if the tower was talking to them. "I know who you are, Dragonmaster. I also know the troubles of Lunar."

"Then you know how desperately we need your help. Please, we beg of you," Michael pleaded.

"Dragonmaster, you do not understand the full depths of Zophar's power. There is nothing I, nor anyone, can do for you," the Star Dragon replied.

They stood in shocked silence. Of all the things they expected the Star Dragon to tell them, this was not it. "There has to be something you can do," Michael pressed, struggling to keep the desperation out of his voice.

"Zophar has amassed too much power to be stopped now, even if I was able to return Ghaleon to his full power all would still be lost," the Star Dragon said.

"No," Lucia said, stepping forward. "If Ghaleon used his true power Zophar could be destroyed."

Michael looked puzzled and turned to Lucia. "His true power? What true power?"

The Star Dragon answered before Lucia could reply. "She speaks of the strongest of the Godly powers. The Power to Create."

"To create?" Michael asked. "How would the power to create destroy Zophar?"

"In order for the new to be created," Lucia said. "First the old must be destroyed."

After a stunned silence Kevin was the first to make any noise. "Huh? But that means if Ghaleon destroys Zophar he'd kill us too."

"That is correct," the Star Dragon confirmed. "Althena had no choice but resort to such means when Zophar attacked the Blue Star millennia ago, but when her powers reacted to Zophar there was a side effect. The Blue Star was badly damaged and left in an unlivable condition. That was why she moved her people to Lunar."

"And if Ghaleon did the same thing now there would be nowhere left for us to go," Kevin said, "Lunar would be as damaged as the Blue Star, and it's not like we could just move back. The Blue Star's still unlivable."

"The Blue Star will be capable of supporting life again someday, but that day is still far off," Lucia said. "Zophar has us in checkmate."

"Impossible!" Michael yelled. "There is no way that I'm going to give up now! Do not tell me that Zophar is too strong or that we are too weak! There has to be a way to defeat him."

Ruby laid a comforting hand on Michael's shoulder as he trembled, overcome with anger and determination. "Michael's right. Zophar must have some kind of weakness. No one is invincible, not even Ghaleon or Althena."

The silence that followed was the longest yet. Everyone in the room waited in anticipation for the Star Dragon to respond. Finally his voice returned. "You are right. Zophar does have a weakness, and there was once a way to forever end him. Althena made her play to defeat her age old nemesis one thousand years ago. If not for the Magic Emperor she would have been successful."

Michael shook his head. "I don't understand. What does the Magic Emperor have to do with Zophar? Are they in alliance together? Is the Magic Emperor still alive?"

"Oh yes, the Magic Emperor is still very much alive, though he is no friend of Zophar's," Nall said to Michael. Then he turned to the Star Dragon. "Why _would_ he keep Althena from stopping Zophar? And more importantly how did he stop her? There was no Althena when the Magic Emperor first appeared."

Michael turned to Nall, thoroughly confused. "That makes no sense at all. Of course there was an Althena when the Magic Emperor attacked. He's the one who killed her."

"Yes he killed her, but he had to bring her back before he could kill her. That's how he took over," Nall explained hurriedly before turning his attention back to the Star Dragon. "You have to tell us. How did Althena plan on defeating Zophar?"

"Wait!" Michael shouted at Nall. Now he was exasperated as well as confused. "The Magic Emperor did not take over. Obviously not, since we are being ruled by Ghaleon."

Nall turned to respond, but the Star Dragon's voice boomed throughout the room before he got the chance. "Silence! It is obvious that most of you are ignorant to the true history of Lunar. Out of all those standing before me only the White Dragon knows the truth, and even he does not fully understand everything."

"Then what is the truth?" Michael demanded.

"Patience," answered the Star Dragon. "Before I tell you, I must warn you. What you learn you will not like. You will try to deny it. You will doubt me, even though you know my word to be true. Would you still hear me?"

Michael nodded. "I would."

"So would I," said Kevin. The others all chorused their affirmatives. The Star Dragon began to speak.

"A millennium ago a great crisis threatened Lunar. In this dark time four champions rose to the challenge and saved Lunar and the Goddess. These were the Four Heroes of Althena. Mel de Alkirk, Lemia Ausa, Dragonmaster Dyne, and Ghaleon. In the aftermath of the crisis Dyne went missing. The world believed him to be dead.

"This was not true. Only two people knew the truth. Dyne himself, and his best friend…Ghaleon. They were the only two witnesses to Althena's request. After the Four Heroes had saved the world she secretly summoned Dyne and Ghaleon. She told them that she had decided to give up her Godly powers and become a mere mortal. Ghaleon objected, but Dyne loved Althena with all his heart, and he trusted her judgment. By sacrificing his Dragonmaster powers he caused her transformation: From Goddess to human.

"Althena was born again as a baby girl. A human baby. Dyne named the girl Luna and gave her to a close friend from his hometown to raise. Dyne vanished from the view of the world, and life on Lunar went on as it always had. The people were oblivious to the fact that their Goddess was no more. Everyone save for Ghaleon. He did not understand why Althena had chosen to become a human. He believed that Althena had abandoned them, and he thought Dyne a fool for helping her.

"Over the years his resentment grew. He was angry and scared. In his eyes her act would ultimately lead to the destruction of the human race. He took it upon himself to remedy her error. Under the alias of the Magic Emperor he forged ties to the Vile Tribe. A group of people who had turned against Althena long ago and were exiled into the wasteland known as the Frontier.

"Fifteen years after Althena's transformation, Ghaleon made his move. He kidnapped the girl Luna, brainwashed her, and forced her to revert back into Goddess form. With the Goddess under his control he raised Althena's Fortress and had her drain Lunar of all magical energy.

"A group of heroes lead by a new Dragonmaster, a boy named Alex who was in love with Luna, tried to stop Ghaleon. They failed. Luna absorbed all of Lunar's energy back into herself. Ghaleon then had her channel the power into his own body, and in doing so became a God. His first act as ruling deity of Lunar was to use the Power to Create. All life was wiped off of Lunar and remade anew. A thousand years have now passed under his ruling."

When the Star Dragon finished his story all the faces in the room were pale. All except for Nall who had known the truth all along. Michael wobbled a little, and for a second it seemed that he might collapse. Ruby tried to steady him, but she felt as weak kneed as everyone else. "No," Michael said after finding his voice. "I don't believe it. Ghaleon would never have done what you say."

"He's right," Kevin agreed. "Ghaleon loves his people. He'd never do those things."

Lucia was shocked as well, but for different reasons. "Why would Althena become human? Ghaleon was right, without a God or Goddess humans would be lost."

"You're a fool!" Nall snapped at her. "Althena knew what she was doing. She had faith in the human race! Ghaleon had no right to step in. All that he accomplished was the slaughter of millions of innocents."

"That's not true!" Michael roared at Nall. "Ghaleon didn't do any of those things!"

"Yes…yes I did."

Michael spun at the sound of the voice. Next to the wall Ghaleon had pulled himself into a sitting position. He was pale and still looked exceptionally weak, but he had regained his conciseness. The Dragonmaster stared at his God for a long moment. The sting Michael had felt for failing Ghaleon was lost. Now all he felt was betrayal. "What did you say?" Michael asked. Hoping against hope that he had somehow misheard.

Ghaleon took a shaky breath and stood up. He placed one hand on the wall to steady himself. For a moment he said nothing as he caught his breath. Then he looked Michael in the eye. "What the Star Dragon told you is all true. Althena did not give me Godhood. I took it by deception and force."

At that moment Michael's spirits were crushed. His eyes dropped to the floor, his shoulders slumped, he let out a long and tired sigh. Dragonmaster Michael suddenly looked much older than twenty five. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came. He closed his mouth and stood silent.

Ghaleon turned his gaze to the Star Dragon. "Tell me…," he began before a fit a coughing stopped him. The Star Dragon statue emitted a soft glow that passed to the sickly God. When the glow faded Ghaleon still looked weak, but he now stood unsupported. "Tell me how my actions in any way hindered Althena's attempt to destroy Zophar. I made no move against Althena until she abandoned the human race. Before that I supported her with all my heart."

"When Althena decided to become a human she did it for the good of all mankind," the Star Dragon answered. "She told you that she wanted humans to be able to fend for themselves and not have to rely on her so heavily. You disagreed with her."

"I did then, and I do now," Ghaleon said.

"Zophar is very powerful, but he has one glaring weakness," the Star Dragon said. "His underestimation of the human race. This is a foolishness that you and he share."

Ghaleon scowled. "What are you getting at?"

"When Althena chose to become human she was looking to the future. She knew Zophar had survived and would one day come to Lunar. She also knew that if she was gone when he arrived he would underestimate how much power it would take to conquer Lunar. Faced against a Goddess like her, or a God like you, he would bide his time and build his power until he became unstoppable. But against humans he would be weak. He would not count them as a threat and would not prepare himself as well as he should.

"She knew that after a thousand years without her aid humanity would be much stronger. It would be a long hard road for them, but one that they would survive and gain from. She sat humanity up so it could prepare itself for Zophar, and she sat Zophar up so he would not prepare himself for humanity. In the scenario that Althena envisioned, Zophar could be destroyed."

The simple genius of Althena's plan hit Ghaleon like a ton of lead. "Why? Why didn't she tell me this?"

Nall locked Ghaleon with a gaze of pure hate. "She told you enough for you to understand. Dyne understood just fine."

Ghaleon stared at the White Dragon, at a loss for words. Nall was right. Dyne had believed in Althena and trusted her. It all made so much sense now. Everything was clear. He had been blind all along, and now his foolish arrogance would cost the world dearly.

Over head the sun vanished. Storm clouds bellowed in at impossible speeds and swallowed up the sky. Within moments the only light came from the daggers of lightning that tore through air. Zophar had found them.


	11. Chapter 10: All Laws Broken

**Chapter** **10**

**All Laws Broken**

Through the transparent ceiling Michael and the others watched the ominously swirling clouds. They spiraled overhead like an upside down whirlpool, but this whirlpool was miles across. In the very center of the vortex, which was directly overhead, there was a pinprick of pure darkness. Michael had no doubt that the black spot was Zophar's location. In fact it was probably Zophar himself.

The familiar voice of Zophar floated down from the vortex. It was muted somewhat due to the magical walls of the tower, but they could still hear its unearthly warble clearly.

 _"Where are you little rats hiding?"_ Zophar mocked them. _"I can sense your presence, but I can't see you. No matter really, whatever magic you're using won't stop my eyes forever. It's only a matter of time and a short one too."_ His horrible laughter rained from above.

Michael drew his sword. "Send me up there, Star Dragon. If it's a fight Zophar wants, I'll give it to him."

"You cannot win," the Star Dragon said. "Zophar's power is beyond your imagination."

"I don't care!" Michael screamed. "I won't wait for him to seek us out and kill us. I won't hide like a dog!"

"If it is truly your desire I will send you above," the Star Dragon conceded. "As long as you understand that to do so is to die."

"I'm going," Michael said his voice almost a growl.

"So am I," said Kevin.

"We're all going," Ruby said. "Hopeless or not, we're all in this together."

"It is apparent that I can't persuade you otherwise. Very well, farewell brave citizens of Lunar. I only wish things were different."

The Star Dragon statue began to glow a bright shade of bluish green. Michael felt his feet lift off the ground. His body was suddenly as light as a feather, and it felt like he was being stretched upward.

"Stop," Ghaleon said. Immediately the Star Dragon quit glowing and everyone dropped back to the floor.

Nall spun around to face the God, cold fury in his eyes. "What are you doing? We have a right to die for Lunar if it's what we choose!"

Ghaleon sneered at the White Dragon. "Die if you want, but dying for, and saving, are two separate things." Ghaleon turned to the Star Dragon. "Is it certain that Althena's plan would have worked. Could humanity really have defeated Zophar?"

The Star Dragon answered, "When humanity is involved nothing is for certain, but I have seen glimpses of that future, the future that never was, and I can tell you that they would have had a fighting chance. More than what we have now."

"But none of that matters anymore, because of you there is no chance," Nall spat.

Ghaleon looked at Nall for a moment. To Nall's surprise the look on his face was not angry, it was apologetic. "White Dragon, you have the right to hate me. All of you do. For what I've done I am truly sorry. But there might still be a way for me to correct my greatest mistake."

Nall narrowed his eyes, but the anger in his face faded a little. "What do you mean?"

"Star Dragon," Ghaleon said. "I know of your powers, and you have abilities that I do not."

The Star Dragon responded before Ghaleon could finish. "I know what you are thinking, and it is not a possibility."

"Yes it is," Ghaleon said. "You have the power to alter time. We could go back and change the way history played out."

"I told you no. Time travel is forbidden. The Laws established by Althena and I prohibit it. Time is not to be tampered with, absolutely no exceptions."

Ghaleon drew himself up and stood tall before the Star Dragon. "Althena is no more! I killed her myself and with her all of the Laws she might have made! I am God, and I approve this breach in the Laws of time travel."

"But I do not," answered the Star Dragon's voice.

"Then you are a bigger fool than I," Ghaleon said, his voice deadly calm.

"There are dangers in time travel that no one understands. It is a powerful force. You and I have no more authority over time than a human does over the ocean."

Ghaleon smiled. "I'm not suggesting we conquer time, only that we sail across it."

"If we alter the flow of time we are taking a tremendous risk. There is the chance something could go wrong."

"And if we don't take that risk," Ghaleon said, "There is no chance. The outcome is already decided."

There was a long pause before the Star Dragon responded. The only noise was the explosive thunder from above. Ghaleon's stare never left the statue of the Star Dragon. Without warning the tower shuddered as a massive bolt of lightning struck. Zophar's laugh shook the heavens. _"There you little rats are! I have found your tower! Come out and play!"_ The tower continued to shake as it was repeatedly riddled with lightning.

"Now!" Ghaleon demanded. "Choose now! Do we die here and let everything come to an end? Or do we take a risk and give Lunar a chance to survive?"

The door in the back of the room flew open. "I will grant you your wish Ghaleon God of Lunar, and alter time. Go into this room, all of you. Time is short."

The soldier inside of Michael kicked on and he ran into the newly opened room, there was no time to question orders. The others followed Michael without hesitation. Ghaleon swept into the room last of all. On the floor in the room's center was a large golden circle two meters in diameter. Like in the other room the Star Dragon's voice seemed to come from all directions at once. "I'll need your help to speed up the process. My power is compatible with the dragons. The four of you gather around the circle, and focus your powers on me; I'll do the rest. Ghaleon, tell whichever of your servants you want to send to get inside the circle."

Michael turned to Ghaleon curiously. "What is our objective?"

Ghaleon placed his hands on his Dragonmaster's shoulders. "Today you have learned much about me that I am not proud of. I was blinded by my own foolishness, and by trying to save the world I inadvertently doomed it. I want you to know that no matter how wrong my methods were, my intentions were pure."

Michael nodded. His faith in Ghaleon had dimmed considerably after learning the truth, but looking into the God's eyes now he could see the sincerity of his words.

"Nonetheless," Ghaleon continued, "I was wrong to distrust Althena, and my mistake must be undone. Dragonmaster Michael, I hereby give you your final mission in your service as a Dragonmaster. Travel back in time and kill me."

"I..I can't," Michael stammered.

"You must. You understand this," Ghaleon said.

After a moment Michael gave a single nod. "Your will be done."

"Good," Ghaleon said. "Now I want you, Kevin, and Narian to get into the circle. No one must see you during the battle. Dragonmaster Alex and the others might not trust you if you show up in the middle of our final showdown. Kevin, right before you are sent I want you to cast a spell of invisibility on the three of you, that is your only job, keep everyone invisible.

"Michael, you must do everything in your power to insure that I am killed. Narian, do all in your power to keep Alex's allies alive. There will be a blonde girl; she is a priestess of Althena. Heal her first and then strengthen her healing magic with your own." Ghaleon turned to Nall. "I hope this will make up for me taking your friends away from you before." Nall said nothing but nodded in appreciation.

The three gathered inside of the circle as the dragons surrounded them. Michael looked over at Ghaleon suddenly. "What will happen to the people in this future?"

It was the Star Dragon's voice that answered. "This future will no longer exist. The three of you will be stuck in the past for the rest of your lives, but everyone else from this future will simply disappear. All things will be rewritten."

Michael's gaze snapped over to Ruby. She would be gone forever? The thought of losing her this way was as unbearable as losing her to death. He couldn't spend the rest of his life without her. Ghaleon followed Michael's eyes and understood his thoughts. The God smiled. "Ruby, you go as well."

"If she goes with them," the Star Dragon announced, "she won't be able to help me open the time gate. Zophar will have shattered the tower by then, and our only chance will be lost." As if on cue the tower shuddered again as Zophar continued his assault.

"He's right," Ruby said, tears forming in her eyes. "I'm sorry Michael, but I have to stay."

"I said go," Ghaleon said firmly. "I will deal with Zophar myself. You will have all the time you need to make a gate with only three dragons."

Ruby looked unsure, then she stepped into the golden circle and embraced Michael. The Dragonmaster looked at Ghaleon and said, "Thank you."

"I can't share my power with the Star Dragon, but I can share it with you," Lucia said to Ghaleon. "I'll give you all that I can, hopefully it will be enough." She walked up to Ghaleon and took his hands in hers. She began to glow with a blue aura. The aura flowed from her into Ghaleon.

"That's enough," Ghaleon said.

"No," Lucia retorted, "I'm dead anyway. If we're to have a chance, you need all the power you can get." Once all of her energy was gone she collapsed. Ghaleon took her in his arms and gently laid her on the floor.

Ghaleon turned and walked. The door slammed shut, and the Star Dragon's voice echoed through the small room. "The three of you focus all of your energy on me. I don't know how long Ghaleon can last." Michael realized that the next time that he saw Ghaleon they would be enemies.

No. They _would_ be allies; Ghaleon just wouldn't know it.

* * *

Ghaleon ascended into the air, rising out of the Star Dragon Tower like a beacon of light. "Show yourself, Zophar!" he commanded. The darkness in the center of the vortex gathered together and took form. This time it did not take the form of Dyne but instead took on its true form. The form of a demon.

Now Zophar only vaguely resembled anything human. He had two arms, two legs, a head and a torso, but the resemblance ended there. The demon was over three meters tall and towered over the God. The inhuman beast floated down to Ghaleon and hovered before him. "I see that you lived. No thanks to your worthless Dragonmaster."

"I will not tolerate your insults any further. Your mockery of Dyne and your insult to Michael will not go unpunished," Ghaleon promised.

Zophar laughed at the threat. "And who exactly will punish me?" Ghaleon didn't answer but thrust his arms forward sending a pillar of solid light crashing into the demon's torso. Zophar flew backwards for a moment, and then vanished in a blink of darkness, reappearing behind Ghaleon. The God spun around and launched a volley of fireballs. They exploded on Zophar's body, but the demon didn't even notice.

"Your powers have grown weak, and your people have been utterly decimated. Join with me, however, and you shall be spared."

Again Ghaleon didn't answer; instead he flung himself forward kneeing Zophar in the face. His head snapped back, but then he brought both of his monstrous arms down onto Ghaleon's head. Ghaleon plummeted downward, but Zophar intercepted him partway down and hit him with a magical explosion of black energy. Ghaleon's path switched to horizontal and he soared a hundred meters through the air before stopping.

"Last chance to join with me," Zophar offered. A moment later a ball of white hot energy exploded in his face. A grotesque smile formed on his demonic mouth. "I will enjoy hearing you scream," Zophar said.

* * *

Time slowed to a crawl inside the Star Dragon Tower. For Michael and the others the minutes that oozed by were the longest they had ever felt. The tower had stopped shaking, and that could only mean that Ghaleon had confronted Zophar. But how long could Ghaleon stall him for?

After the longest wait in his entire life the room began to vibrate wildly. It wasn't the walls and floor like it had been when Zophar was attacking. Everything was vibrating now. The floor, the walls, the air, Michael even felt himself vibrating. The room became a huge colorful blur. Then he heard the Star Dragon call out. "Now! Cast the spell of invisibility."

He heard Kevin chanting and for a moment felt the telltale tingle of magic, but by this time everything was a blur and he couldn't be sure if the spell had worked or not. There was a sound like ripping cloth, only a hundred times louder. Then it was a thousand times louder, then ten-thousand, then a million, then there was the feeling of being sucked into a tornado, and that was followed by blinding multicolored lights, and that was followed by blackness.

* * *

Zophar's hand was clamped tightly around Ghaleon's neck. The God tried to break the demon's grip, but it was too strong. Zophar's grip loosened slightly. "There, now you can breathe. Now you can scream."

Electricity coursed through Zophar's arm and into Ghaleon. The God began to spasm and scream with what little breath he had. The demon laughed. He was superior! This pathetic little God was nothing compared to him. He was victorious! Something was wrong.

The last thought struck Zophar as odd. Nothing was wrong. Everything had gone completely as he had planned it, but something was going on. He could feel it in the core of his blackened soul. Something was very wrong.

The world started to blur out of focus, all the colors melting together. There was a high pitched squealing noise that ripped through the air. It was almost a nails on chalkboard type of noise, the kind that drives a person insane. The world, everything, began to vibrate violently, and bright explosions of color began to consume the world. Zophar looked down and realized that Ghaleon was laughing. Wild fury contorted Zophar's face into an insane grimace. "What have you done!?" he demanded. "What have you done!?"

Ghaleon continued to laugh as he stared the demon straight in the eyes. "I've atoned for my sins."

Zophar let the God drop, laughing as he fell, and watched the world get consumed as everything began to end. The demon let out a howl of hateful fury as he realized what was happening. Somehow against all odds the pathetic little God had figured out a way to beat him.

Zophar continued to howl. Ghaleon continued to laugh. The world came to an end.


	12. Chapter 11: All Wrongs Righted

**Chapter** **11**

**All Wrongs Righted**

For a moment everything was black. Michael wondered if something had gone wrong. He tried to call out, but no sound escaped his lips. After a moment he realized that he couldn't even feel his lips, couldn't feel anything actually. Panic began welling up inside of him, but before it could take hold the blackness began to fade.

The blackness melted away from his vision like a muddy window hit with a bucket of water. First there were still large spots of inky darkness, but his eyesight quickly cleared. He found himself standing inside of Ghaleon's Fortress at the base of the Heavenly Stairway. Ghaleon himself stood tall and imposing in front of a group of strangers. Everyone was bloody and beaten. It was clear that they had been fighting viciously.

Ghaleon and the person Michael recognized as Dragonmaster Alex were in the best shape of everyone. The others all looked ready to collapse, and the blonde girl Ghaleon had spoken of was already down. In the few seconds it took Michael to take this in all the feeling in his body returned. Pins and needles exploded throughout his body sending him to his knees.

He looked to his left and saw Kevin, Ruby, and Narian. All three of them were also on the ground trying to fight off the painful sensation. Kevin had cast the invisibility spell in such a way that all those affected could still see eachother; although, they appeared only as blurry transparent outlines. Sound returned next, coming in so quickly that it seemed unnaturally loud. Everything was amplified several times louder than normal. Kevin's hoarse whisper of, "Damn, that hurts!" sounded as if he were speaking through a megaphone.

"Stop this foolishness, Dragonboy," Ghaleon's snide confidant voice rang out clashing against Michael's eardrums, "your team is looking a little shaky. Why don't you just give up? This is NOT a fight that you can win…no matter how hard you try."

The dark haired man standing to Alex's right forced a smile and said, "Don't worry Alex; I'm still in tip-top shape. Let's kick this guy's ass and go home."

Taking another deep breath Alex charged once more swinging the Sword of Althena in a sideways arch at Ghaleon's head. Stepping quickly backwards the Magic Emperor managed to avoid contact with the sacred blade.

Magical energy glowed in the palms of Ghaleon's hands. First it was dim blue, but it rapidly changed into a radiant green that exploded outward at his attacker. Alex blocked the magical blast with his shield, but the impact sent him hurdling to the floor anyway.

As Ghaleon readied another energy attack he was caught in the back by a fireball. It exploded off of his magical barrier mere inches away from his body. Though his magical armor deflected the brunt of damage it knocked him off balance allowing Alex to return to his feet unharmed.

Still off balance from the brown haired girl's fireball, Ghaleon wasn't able to dodge the next frontal assault launched by Alex. Taking the full blow to the chest he lurched backwards. If it wasn't for his magical shield the strike would have been fatal. Alex rushed at Ghaleon once more, but this time Ghaleon sidestepped around him charging an enormous fireball in his hand. Alex spun around just in time to bring up his shield as Ghaleon launched the massive flaming orb; however, the orb missed Alex by several feet.

Michael understood Ghaleon's strategy at once. Ghaleon wasn't aiming at Alex, but at the magic using girl. Luckily Ruby caught this too, and in the split second before Ghaleon's fireball hit, Ruby cast a spell of fire resistance on the brown haired girl. Alex turned his head just in time to watch the brown haired girl explode into flames. With a shriek more of surprise than pain she collapsed to the glistening marble floor.

"YOU BASTARD!" cried the other magic user thinking the woman he loved had just been killed. "You son of a bi…" He trailed off as shock transformed into rage and then into pure electrical energy. With the last ounce of his strength he sent a bolt of lightning directly into Ghaleon's mid torso. Focusing his energies into his magical barrier Ghaleon weathered the electrical attack without taking much damage to himself. Alex watched helplessly as his friend collapsed from exhaustion. Ghaleon raised an arm and begun charging up for another energy strike.

Things were happening fast, and Michael understood that if they were to have any chance of turning things around they'd have to act quickly. "Narian, get to their healer now!" he commanded in a loud whisper. "Kevin, you just make sure we stay invisible. Ruby, try to hamper Ghaleon's attacks, but don't make it too obvious." They fanned out, Narian rushed to the blonde girl and began praying, Ruby ran to Alex's last standing friend, and Michael went to the Dragonmaster's side.

"Kyle look out!" Alex screamed. Ruby slammed into Kyle at the last second pulling him to the ground, a bolt of green energy narrowly missing them both. Alex sighed in relief. He didn't know how Kyle managed to dodge that quickly, but he was glad. Still, Kyle had landed hard and was likely out of the fight.

"Well now Dragonboy. This looks a bit more even doesn't it," said Ghaleon as he took a step toward Alex. "This is how it should be don't you agree? The battle that will decide the fate of Lunar is now between you and me. The Magic Emperor against the _mighty_ Dragonmaster," his voice seethed with sarcasm.

In direct contradiction to Ghaleon's words the blonde haired girl sprung to her feet. "Althena, grant me strength!" she cried out. The green aura of healing magic washed over her fallen comrades. Unseen by her side stood Narian, former priest of Ghaleon, praying alongside her, strengthening her magic.

"Jessica!" Alex said in relief. "I thought you were out of the fight."

Jessica gave Alex a mischievous grin. "You know me better than that. I'm not going down until we stop this bastard. Which is more than I can say for my worthless boyfriend. Kyle, why aren't you up yet?"

Kyle shook his head groggily. The healing magic had helped quite a bit, unfortunately, he was still not in prime condition. "Sorry honeybun, but I think my arm's broken. If you didn't skip school so much maybe your magic would have done a better job."

Jessica placed her hands on her hips and scowled at Kyle. "My magic is at its best. If you weren't such a sloppy fighter you wouldn't have gotten so hurt."

"Can the two of you get along long enough for us to fight Ghaleon?" Alex said without taking his eyes off of his foe.

"Sure thing," Jessica answered. "We're behind you."

"So am I," the brown haired girl said as she pulled herself off the ground.

The male magic user got up as well and stared in amazement at the girl. "Mia, I thought you were dead."

"No, I'm all right," she said, "but my magic is drained. How about you Nash?"

The male magic user shook his head. "No, I doubt that I could cast another spell."

Ghaleon stared in disbelief as his enemies picked themselves up. Somehow the priestess had recovered, even though he had taken her out early in the fight. Ghaleon forced himself to stay focused. They might all be up but they weren't in the best fighting condition. Nash and Mia were useless without their magic, and Kyle couldn't put up much of a fight with his broken arm. Still damage had been done. Dragonmaster Alex had been healed too, and now he held the advantage.

For a while Michael believed they had already changed the course of events. Ghaleon had lost the advantage, all Alex had to do was press in hard and he could win. A flicker in Ghaleon's eye told him otherwise. Michael followed Ghaleon's gaze over to a flying white cat. Nall! Michael recognized the white cat as the White Dragon in his small form. Michael pointed at Ruby, and then over to Nall. She nodded and ran to the infant dragon.

As Michael predicted Ghaleon flung a fireball at Nall. Alex was caught off guard by the sudden movement, but when he saw the fireball's target he blanched. "NALL, LOOK OUT!"

At that moment Ghaleon knew he had won. The Dragonmaster had turned to such an angle that he couldn't deflect any blows, the others were too far away and too weak to stop his attack, and if Alex fell the others would fall as well. A violet blade of energy burst from Ghaleon's outstretched hand. He thrust it at Alex's side. It would pierce his lung, killing him, and the fight would be his.

The energy sword never touched Alex. At the last moment the blade was knocked away by an unseen force. The blade missed Alex's body by less than an inch. The unexpected miss caused Ghaleon stumble forward. Alex spun around and struck Ghaleon hard and fast.

Alex had got in close, and Ghaleon had no way of dodging or parrying the attacks. The Sword of Althena came down once, then twice. Each blow causing Ghaleon's magical barrier to flare. He knew that Alex would get a third blow, but he also knew that his shield would hold off three direct blows, and he could get away before Alex could hit him with a crucial fourth blow. Ghaleon was confident that the fight would still be his.

Before the third blow fell Ghaleon was struck hard from behind. His eyes widened in surprise and terror as his magical shield shattered completely. When Alex struck again, he struck flesh. Ghaleon screamed in pain and tried to back away, but an invisible force pushed him forward, straight into the tip of Alex's sword.

Ghaleon stared down at the sword that was plunged through him, then he stared at the boy who had put it there. Alex jerked the sword out and backed away. Blood smeared Ghaleon's hands as he touched the point of entry. Looking at that blood he realized the truth. He had lost.

Michael's hand was still on Ghaleon's back. He had struck the blow that destroyed Ghaleon's shield, and then he had pushed him into Alex's sword. The Magic Emperor collapsed to the floor. The two Dragonmasters stood over him. "You were one of the Four Heroes," Alex said. "You were one of my heroes. Why'd you do this Ghaleon? I was wrong about you. You are no hero."

Unseen to Alex the second Dragonmaster was weeping bitterly into his hand, over the man who he had once worshiped. Ruby placed an arm around Michael as she too cried. Without warning Ghaleon rose to a knee and stared into Alex's eyes. "You have sent the world into darkness."

Ghaleon coughed violently and blood flew from his lips. Then he melted into shadow and was gone.

"Michael," Ruby whispered. "Did he escape? Should we go after him?"

"No," Michael said, "He's dying; he just went someplace to do it in private."

Alex turned toward his friends. "Is everyone okay? Nall, thank goodness you're alright."

"I got really lucky on that one, Alex," Nall said. "I don't know how Ghaleon missed me. I must have a guardian angel."

Alex smiled at his friends. "We did it, but all of you need to get off of this Fortress as soon as you can. Nall, can you carry everyone again?"

"I…I think so, but what about you, Alex?" Nall asked.

"I came here to save Luna, and I'm not leaving without her. It's too dangerous for everyone to stay though. All of you need to get to safety."

Kevin and Narian walked over to Michael. "Hey buddy, I can't keep us invisible for much longer," Kevin said.

"I know," Michael said. "But I want to know how things play out. Please, just a little longer."

Michael watched as Nall transformed into his adult dragon form and carried the others off the fortress. Alex stayed behind and headed for the ivory staircase. When he reached it Althena threatened him, but Alex pressed forward. Even from their low vantage point they could see the lightning bolts that Althena used to discourage Alex from proceeding.

When he was about halfway up the staircase Alex stopped. They couldn't tell exactly what he was doing, but they saw him bring something up to his face. A beautiful melody floated through the air.

"Looks like this Dragonmaster's also a musician," Narian commented.

Alex continued to play his instrument as he walked the rest of the way up. Althena deterred him no more. The Dragonmaster and the Goddess spoke. They were too far away for Michael to hear, but he saw what happened next perfectly. Alex rose into the air next to Althena, there was a bright flash of light, and when the light receded they had both changed. Alex no longer wore the Dragonmaster Armor, and Althena was now clothed in the simple dress of a country girl. Alex had sacrificed his Dragonmaster powers and turned Althena back into Luna.

"We need to go, now," Kevin said urgently. His words brought Michael back to his senses. For the first time he noticed that the fortress was shaking violently.

"Dear God, the whole place is going to come crashing down," Narian said.

Ruby, not a stranger to quick getaways, immediately grew into her dragon form. Michael and the others climbed onto her back and started to fly away just as the mighty Fortress began to crumble. From their viewpoint in the sky they watched the life energy flow back into Lunar, and the desolate wasteland grew green with life once again.

"Continue to circle until we spot Alex and Luna," Michael told Ruby. "I'm not going to let them die after all they've been through."

"I can see them," Kevin shouted. "Over there."

Michael followed his finger until he spotted the two. They were in some sort of magical bubble, floating down past the crumbling fortress side by side. "They're safe, let's get out of here," Michael said.

Behind him Kevin let out an audible sigh as the invisibility spell ended. "'Bout damn time," he muttered. "You guys should really try to keep a spell going for that long. It's not fun, trust me."

* * *

Ruby chose to land next to a flowing stream at a cliff base. "Michael, can we talk?" she asked. "In private?"

Michael spotted Kevin and Narian over by the stream. "Of course," he said, leading her to a grove of trees.

"You saw what Alex did with Luna," she said. "It was the same thing the Star Dragon told us Dyne did for Althena."

"Yeah," Michael replied. "I saw."

Ruby took a deep breath then said, "Michael, I want to be human."

Michael looked at her in surprise. "Would it work?"

She nodded. "If it works on a Goddess why wouldn't it work on a dragon?"

"And you're sure?" he asked.

She smiled up at him. "I would rather live for another fifty years with you than live an extra thousand without you. I've never been more sure of anything in my life."

Looking into her red eyes the Dragonmaster embraced her. They kissed, and as their lips met an aura of brilliant light engulfed them. He felt his magical energy peak, all of it gathering in one spot, then it evaporated away. All of the magic he once had was gone.

Ruby looked at him with brown eyes. Human eyes. They kissed again. Michael was a Dragonmaster no more.


	13. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

Kevin made his way across the wooden walkways of the Nanza Barrier. He wasn't a huge fan of the Nanza Barrier. He was used to the bigger flashier life of Vane, but if this was where Michael and Ruby wanted to live the more power to them. Visiting wasn't bad as long as he didn't have to live here himself.

After wandering aimlessly for a while Kevin finally found his bearings and located the residential area of the makeshift fortress. Most of the residents lived in a separate barracks. The ones with families, a rare exception, lived in larger apartments. Since most residents were bachelors there were few apartments. Michael and Ruby lived in one of the private apartments. Not fancy, but respectable Kevin supposed.

Over the last half a year Michael and Ruby had worked for Kyle, the Nanza Barrier's leader as well as one of the Five Heroes. Should be one of the Nine Heroes, Kevin thought with a touch of resentment. He helped save this world after all, and no one knew about it, or would ever know about it! And to Kevin that seemed like the most heinous crime ever.

All of his hard earned fame was lost; thinking about it made him sick. Still, life on this version of Lunar wasn't too bad, and he could earn fame anew. He _was_ that good, after all.

Kevin approached the third apartment from the left on the second story level, paused to make sure he had the correct one, then knocked. A moment later the door opened and Ruby stepped out. Her face lit up and she hugged her friend. "Oh Kevin! You haven't been around for ages. Come in!"

"Beautiful as ever I see," Kevin greeted, "but I must point out that you're getting quite fat."

Ruby blushed as she rubbed her large belly. "Can you believe it? I'm going to be a mommy."

"And I'm going to be a dad," Michael said as he walked into the living area from one of the other rooms. Kevin still wasn't used to seeing him without his Dragonmaster armor on. Now Michael was dressed like a standard Nanza soldier. Seeing him in plain leather armor was just weird.

"Scary thought," Kevin joked. In truth he couldn't be happier for them. In their former lives they never would have had the chance to be parents. It was impossible for a dragon to conceive with human child, but now that Ruby was one hundred percent human, having children wasn't a fantasy anymore. "When's the little guy due?"

"Not for another few months," Michael answered. "Hopefully by that time we'll have a name."

"Kevin's always been a favorite of mine," Kevin offered. Ruby made gagging motions, and the friends all laughed. Michael realized how happy he was to still be able to laugh. During Zophar's attack he didn't think they, or anyone, would ever laugh again.

"I see the Magic Guild accepted you," Michael said. After seeing the surprised look on Kevin's face he added, "You're wearing the official robes of this Lunar's Magic Guild."

Kevin looked down at his robes with distaste. "I wish I still had my old robes. They were about a hundred times nicer than these things, but they're way too torn up to be serviceable. Besides I'm not a ranking member of the guild anymore."

"So how'd you get in?" Ruby asked. "They must have noticed that you weren't a newbie, weren't they suspicious about that. Think you're a rogue wizard or something?"

"Nah," Kevin dismissed the notion with a wave of his hand. "When Vane came crashing to the ground they lost a lot of records. I just told them that I lost my memory in the crash and all I know about my past life is my name and my ability to use magic. They had no way to disprove my claim, so they made me a member."

"And any news on Narian?" Michael asked. The former High Priest had parted ways with them shortly after the final battle with Ghaleon, and they hadn't seen or heard from him since.

"Yeah, I got curious too so I looked into it," Kevin said, "He joined Althena's Church and officially became a priest again, but that's about all I know. Honestly, I think the old timer's taken it all pretty hard. Not just losing his God, but getting thrown into a world where Althena isn't really around either. I think he just needs some time."

"Dinner's almost ready. Why don't you join us," Ruby offered, making her way to the kitchen.

"You sure there'll be enough?" Kevin asked as he followed her in.

Ruby gave him a curious look. "Of course, why wouldn't there be?"

Kevin shrugged. "Well your getting so fat that I just figured you might eat most of the food yourself."

"I'm not fat. I'm pregnant," she said with a scowl.

"So you claim," he retorted.

Michael smiled to himself as he joined them at the table. They were in a whole new world and had to start their lives over from scratch, but as long as he had his friends he didn't really care.

* * *

The people of Lunar lived on for the next thousand years. Life was harder without the direct aid of the Goddess, but they survived and grew stronger. Time had reached an age of prosperity. Soon that prosperity would be threatened. Zophar would arrive from the Blue Star bringing with him death and destruction, but that had not yet come to pass.

The boy ran playfully through the grass. He had scratches on his arms and legs from climbing trees and falling off rocks, but if he felt them it didn't show. Instead he just ran freely through the tall grass, laughing happily as the wind whipped at his brown hair. Alongside him flew his constant companion, a red cat like animal, no bigger than a kitten.

"Hiro! Supper's ready," an old man called, stepping outside of a solitary house.

"Coming Grandpa!" the boy called back.

"That's m'boy," the old man said, scooping the child into his arms. "Been having fun have you?" The boy nodded vigorously and burst into tales of the many adventures he had just had.

The boy had no idea that tens of thousands of miles away on the Blue Star a demon was beginning to awaken, or that his best friend was really the legendary Red Dragon. He was young and happy. For him every day was a new adventure full of fun and excitement, but someday he would do great things. After all, he was the direct descendant of Michael and Ruby. Two of the heroes who had saved the world in secret a millennium ago. From this boy great things were to be expected.

THE END


End file.
